


A Little Night Rain

by Spicy_Skeleton_Roll



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Battle City Arc, F/M, enjoy my garbage fiction, kind of a mix between the dub and the manga, there will be duels
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-13
Updated: 2018-10-13
Packaged: 2019-04-22 08:11:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 28,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14304483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spicy_Skeleton_Roll/pseuds/Spicy_Skeleton_Roll
Summary: Amaya Hisakawa has been friends with Yugi since they were kids, and until now she's always been happy on the sidelines, cheering her friend on as he dueled his way to victory. That is, until she agrees to go on a date with his other self and a mysterious package shows up at her doorstep. Now Amaya has found herself in possession of a millennium item, one that allows her to merge a portion of her soul with another body. Her past and her fate may be more entwined with the spirit in the millennium puzzle than she could ever have imagined. And with Battle City drawing nearer and Marik after Yugi's life, Amaya can't afford to stay on the sidelines any longer. She'll have to duel if she wants to unravel the secrets of her past and save her friends.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi welcome to my garbage fanfiction. Here you'll find all the blood, ridiculous card games to the death, and overbearing magical bonds of friendship you could ever want.

It sounded like rain.

The thing about the sound of rain is that it's never just rain. It's clusters of tiny taps that start like impatient fingers and build until they become pounding fists. It's gurgling rivers spewing from gutters and splashes underfoot. It's disappointed and disgusted groans, the snap of umbrellas, an echo that fills the school hall as lockers slam shut. A quiet murmur that moves through everything it touches like static electricity. Amaya stood with her head leaning against the window, her eyes closed as she savored the sensation of the cool glass shivering with every drop. Down the hall, Joey and Tristan were arguing loudly as they mopped the floor.

“Maybe I'll go visit Serenity, then!” Tristan teased. The mop smacked too loudly against the floor as Joey grit his teeth in response.

“Tristan, you don't go anywhere near her!”

“Well if you're in remedial math every day, _someone_ has to keep her company!”

Rain sounded like sneakers squeaking on a wet floor.

“Hey, Amaya!” Yugi greeted. Amaya didn't open her eyes or turn to acknowledge him.

“Hey, Yug,” she replied. “I'm surprised you're still here. School's been out for half an hour.”

He laughed, shifting his backpack uncomfortably. “Actually, I wanted to talk to you,” he admitted. “I thought someone would have already taken you home, but then I remembered Tristan and Joey both had cleaning duty today, so I figured you were probably waiting for them.” Amaya shrugged.

“They're sure taking their sweet time,” she replied loudly, and though she didn't turn her head to specifically address them, Joey and Tristan immediately stopped arguing with each other to turn on her instead.

“Maybe if _somebody_ would get off their lazy bum and help, we'd be out of here faster!” Joey snapped at her.

“Yeah, not all of us are so lucky to get out of cleaning duty!” Tristan added.

“Hey,” Amaya snickered. “It's not my fault that the teacher is too uncomfortable to bring it up. I'm not just gonna volunteer for it.” Joey huffed in resignation.

“Yeah, yeah. Lucky broad. And we've been here half an hour already.” He nodded, as if patting himself on the back for his own misfortune, and then froze. “Half an hour?” he repeated.

“You're the one who just said it, man,” Tristan answered. In a panic, Joey dropped the mop he was holding. It clattered to the ground. His shoes whined pathetically against the wet tile as he scurried to Amaya and Yugi.

“Aw man, I'm so sorry Amaya, but I'm late to go see my sister at the hospital! Ahhhh, but I promised to walk you home today! What do I do?” Amaya opened her eyes now, turning her cheek away from the window to face him. A milky haze covered what had once been brilliantly red eyes, but they still widened in surprise.

“Joey, don't worry about _me_ ,” she insisted. “Go. _Now.”_

“And that means I”m gonna be here even longer finishing his half of the work,” Tristan added.

“Guys, don't worry about it,” Yugi said. “I'll take Amaya home. I wanted to talk to her anyway. Go see Serenity, Joey. I”m sure she's worried about you.”

“Thanks guys, I owe you one!” Joey sniffed and took off running down the hall.

“I call your lunch tomorrow!” Amaya shouted after him.

“I call a date with your sister!” Tristan shouted too.

“NOT ON YOUR LIFE! EITHER OF YOU!” The screech of his shoes bouncing off the walls followed behind long after he'd rounded the corner and disappeared.

“Shall we?” Yugi asked, offering his elbow to Amaya. She took it, the two said goodbye to Tristan, and left.

Outside, the rain was even louder, drumming across the top of Yugi's umbrella and spattering to the flagstones around them. Amaya drew closer to Yugi's side to avoid getting wet. It was actually kind of nice like this, like the two of them were in a small bubble, safe and tucked away from the angry sky.

“What was it you wanted to talk about?” she asked. Yugi was quiet for a moment.

“Actually,” he finally said, chuckling shyly, “It's not about me. It's about the spirit of the millennium puzzle.” Amaya remembered well their recent adventure to Duelist Kingdom. If adventure was even the right word. Rescue mission? It had only been a few weeks since then, when they had gone to rescue Yugi's grandpa from Pegasus, and in the process found out that a mysterious spirit dwelled within the millennium puzzle, which possessed Yugi whenever he dueled. Well, in the process was a relative term. A lack of sight could be a wonderful thing sometimes. While her friends insisted it was indeed Yugi dueling, Amaya had nearly lost her mind trying to prove it was someone else entirely. She had been right, of course. Their voices were _completely_ different.

“He's been brooding lately. He doesn't remember anything about his past or his identity, and it's been really hard on him. I thought maybe you could help.”

“How am I supposed to help?” Amaya asked.

“Well...I thought if he went on a date with you, it might help him relax.” Amaya stopped in her tracks. With her arm hooked around Yugi's elbow, he was forced to stop too, and for a long moment the two of them stood under the umbrella arm in arm, the only sound between them the rain screaming around them.

“A date?” she asked.

“Well, yeah,” Yugi said.

“Yugi, I've never been on a date in my life.”

“Well that's okay. I don't think he's been on one either.”

“No, I don't think you understand.” Amaya shook her head. “A _date_ , Yugi. With a boy. I don't even know what my _hair_ looks like in the morning. Outside of my school uniform, I have no idea what shirt I'm even wearing. How am I supposed to make myself look good for a date?” Yugi laughed.

“I don't usually see you so worked up over stuff like this. Since when do you care what your hair looks like?”

“This is _different_.” He hummed in acknowledgment, as if he'd figured that much.

“He's not going to care what you look like, Amaya,” he insisted. “He likes you just the way you are.”

“And how do you know that?”

“Because I like you just the way you are.” He took a step forward, gently urging her to follow, and reluctantly Amaya began walking again. The pounding of the rain and the peeling of wet tires as cars passed on the street was beginning to merge and become a single mass of noise around them. Amaya felt trapped under the umbrella, like she was caught between tv static and her own racing thoughts. They crossed the street.

“Why not ask Tea? Doesn't she have like...a huge crush on him or something?”

“I think you'll be able to help him more,” Yugi insisted. “You were the first one to realize the spirit was his own person. Honestly, for the longest time even I thought he was just another personality I hadn't been aware of. Like a figment of my imagination when I wanted to be brave or strong. It wasn't until that shadow game against the spirit of the millennium ring that I started to become aware that the other me might be really...other. But you knew instantly he was someone else, even though you can't see either of us.” Amaya grumbled.

“That's because your voices are completely different and he's at least four inches taller than you.”

“Well, maybe you're right,” Yugi laughed. “But I don't think you give yourself enough credit.” Yugi led her up the front steps of her apartment building and stopped. Out of the rain now, Amaya let go of his arm and backed out of the umbrella. She sighed.

“Okay, I'll do it.”

“Really?” Yugi leapt forward and hugged her. “Thanks, Amaya! Tomorrow at Domino Station, ten AM!”

“But-” she began to say, but he was already running off.

“You won't regret this!” She heard his voice through the first peels of thunder, but he was already at the gate, and before she could respond he had disappeared into the storm. Amaya dragged her feet as she opened the door and headed up the stairs. This was really too much for her to handle. The spirit of the millennium puzzle was-

Well...what _was_ he? Did he even have a name? She couldn't keep calling him Spirit, like he was a fucking horse or something. If she was honest with herself, the only reason she had been so insistent to say no was because she _didn't_ know what he was. Yugi's faith in her was misplaced. She had no idea what the spirit of the millennium puzzle looked like, what he thought about, what he would think about _her_. Amaya had been blind for as long as she could remember, and for the most part it didn't bother her. She had no memory of the color red, or the ripple of light on water, or even the face of her own mother to feel nostalgic about. Being sighted was a passing fancy to her. But when she thought about dates, she thought about how a boy was supposed to gaze into her eyes. How he was supposed to smile at her and give her sidelong glances as they stood side by side, stealing peaks at her as if he couldn't take his eyes off of her. How a boy was supposed to tell you how beautiful your eyes are.

People hated Amaya's eyes. The cataracts made them uncomfortable. What if he hated them too? How was she supposed to navigate this dark and trap laden pit she'd just been thrown in? No one had ever taught her what a non sighted date was supposed to feel like.

She reached out and unlocked her apartment door, but as she stepped forward she tripped over something on the hall mat. Cursing, she leaned down to pick it up. It was a box wrapped in paper and tape. Her hands gazed over it, inspecting it, but there was no stamp, no indent in the paper to indicate any writing like a name or a postal address. She brought it inside and sat at the kitchen table to open it.

The paper slipped off easily. Inside the box were two things. One was an ordinary envelope, the other a small lacquered chest with raised engravings along its edges. They were metal of some kind, but whether the marks were the letters of a language she didn't know or merely decorative, she couldn't decipher. Carefully, she unsealed the envelope and pulled from it a single sheet of parchment. She was surprised. The letter was written in braille.

_To our queen, the star that breaks the night_

_Still shining brightly_

_Even after five thousand years of darkness_

It was unsigned. Shaking, she placed the letter back on the table. What the fuck was this? Amaya stood abruptly and opened her front door. There was no one in the hall, not a sign of whoever had left this package on her welcome mat. As she closed the door, she locked both the deadbolt and the sliding lock for safe measure. Then she moved to the sliding door that led out onto her balcony. Once again, she heard no one, not even another tenant smoking a cigarette in the alley. She locked that door as well. Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. Taking a deep breath, she sat back down at the table and turned her attention to the engraved chest.

Inside it was something metal and round, made of interlocking pieces and engraved notches. At one point on the circle was an oval shaped piece with an indent in the center. Amaya was stumped. She ran her hands over the object again, but still she couldn't decipher exactly what it was. Another note was tucked into the box, this one a small, rolled piece of parchment. She read it.

_Place it on your head and reclaim your throne._

Hesitantly, she took the metal circle out of the box and placed it on her head. It fit snug, the metal oval cool against the top of her forehead. A minute passed....

….And nothing happened. Amaya groaned and slumped back in her chair. She felt so ridiculous now. She'd been so paranoid, locking all of her doors and holding her breath at these mysterious messages, and all it was was some kind of jewelry. For all she knew, her neighbor, Mrs. White, had simply bought her some kind of gag gift and was waiting for Amaya to run and confront her so that she could laugh about it. After all, there were all sorts of weird shit you could buy on the internet now adays. She wished Yugi had walked her up to her door. If he had seen this, he could have saved her the embarrassment and just told her what this weird piece of head jewelry was.

And then-burning along her scalp where the metal touched her. The sensation of falling up. She felt like she was hovering a few inches above her body, and then something grabbed her by her ankles and pulled her back down screaming.

She saw herself in the mirror.

Wait.

She did _what_ now?

Amaya wasn't sure how to describe what was before her, only that it completely different. What she usually perceived wasn't darkness, but nothingness. The world from her eyes looked to her the way the back of somebody's own head looks to them. There, but not. And this...this was anything but nothing. She raised her hands to touch her face, but as her hands brushed across her own cheek, she realized the person in the mirror didn't follow her movement. Their hair was tall and pointed, while she could feel her own smooth waves under her fingers. There was no metal jewelry to be seen. She realized she could feel herself still sitting at the kitchen table, separate from what she was seeing now. The color of this person's eyes, whether they were a boy or a girl...Amaya had no context for these colors and textures and shapes all around her.

“Now if I could just figure out what to wear,” Yugi said, adjusting the collar around his neck. Amaya froze. This was...this was Yugi in the mirror? This was...

This was what her best friend really looked like... Amaya felt her body double take in the kitchen chair.

“A date?” another voice, deeper and more mature sounding asked, and Amaya recognized it as the spirit of the millennium puzzle. At first she didn't see him, and then Yugi's eyes turned their attention to his bed, where another boy sat lounging against the wall. Once again, Amaya had no words to describe what she saw, only that his hair and eyes were similar, but he was most definitely taller. And also..transparent? Was that the word people used? Amaya had never seen anything transparent before, but she knew the word, and she knew she could see the bedspread right through this boy.

“It might be,” Yugi replied smugly. The spirit of the millennium puzzle grinned.

“I would never have expected you to be so bold, Yugi,” he said. “Who is it? Tea?”

“Nope.” Yugi smiled coyly. The spirit frowned.

“Amaya?” he asked. Amaya felt her heart thump painfully in her chest. Why did he sound so disappointed by that? Did he dislike her that much?

Amaya felt a wave of nausea roll through her, and with shaking hands she ripped the circlet off of her head. Yugi, the spirit, and his bedroom vanished. She was jerked back down, stuffed back into her own body, and the entire world of color and light was gone, replaced by a blackness she had never seen before. Having tasted sight for the first time, its absence left her brain reeling, her eyes frantically straining for any sliver of it. Amaya ran for the bathroom, stumbling, bumping into walls even though she knew this apartment as well as the back of her hand. She scrambled for the toilet....

And vomited.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Date part 1. With a long ass duel. Because I said there would be.

Amaya sighed, shuffled her feet, and fidgeted with the sunglasses on her face again. She didn't usually wear them, and the feeling of the plastic against the bridge of her nose was beginning to bug her. She had already put her white cane away in her purse, and now she stood leaning against a pillar, trying as hard as possible to not look conspicuously blind. She wasn't used to feeling nervous, but what had happened last night had left her shaken. If she was honest with herself, the glasses and the cane were conflicting interests. She both felt like she needed them to look as blind as possible, to remind herself that this was her natural state of being and the brief moment of being sighted last night had been a fluke, and also to look the least blind she possibly could because she was still haunted by the way the spirit had said her name. He had sounded so disappointed. The last thing she wanted to feel was like he was humoring her by being seen in public with her.

_If that was real at all..._

She took a deep breath and steadied herself. She wouldn't know until she asked. As she had left this morning, she had slipped the metal circlet into her bag. Yugi may have asked her to help the spirit of the millennium puzzle, but now she was sure she had questions for him as well.

When Yugi arrived at Domino Station, he saw Amaya already there. She hadn't noticed him yet.

“Okay, spirit. Whether you like it or not, you take over from here.” The millennium puzzle glowed in his hands, enveloping him in its light, and when it had faded the spirit of the millennium puzzle had taken his place. He blinked, confused.

“Wait...Yugi..this isn't a-” he sputtered. He looked down at the millennium puzzle. “You can't- this isn't a duel!” he screamed down at it, but he realized people were beginning to stare. And that was when he saw her. Amaya stood leaning against a nearby pillar, wearing a pink leather jacket and a white messenger bag thrown over her shoulder. Her honey colored hair fell in waves over her shoulder. She was turned towards him, one eyebrow raised over her sunglasses.

“Oh,” the spirit said, flustered. “Hi.”

They ended up at the Burger World nearby, sitting in absolute silence. Amaya fiddled absently with the straw in her drink, tapping out a beat to the harsh squeak of plastic on plastic as she pulled it up and down across the lid. She kept thinking back to last night, what she had seen through Yugi's eyes. The boy on the bed. Had that even been real? Was that what the spirit truly looked like? He'd been so...

She wasn't sure what the right word was. Was hot the right word? Yeah, that was it. Even though Amaya had never seen anything before, he'd been exactly what she'd always imagined when she heard his voice. Her sunglasses slid down the bridge of her nose.

“So...what should I call you?” she finally asked. That seemed to startle him out of his own inner monologue.

“I'm sorry?” he asked.

“Your name,” Amaya replied, snappier this time. “I can't just call you 'the spirit of the millennium puzzle'. I mean it's a great stage name, but it's too way too long. Not practical for every day use.”

“Oh.” He thought about it for a second. “You can call me Yami.” Amaya snorted.

“Yami?” she repeated. “That's...um...edgy.”

“I'm sorry,” Yami replied. “I knew this was a bad idea.” Amaya's heart sank slowly into her stomach. Of course. There was that lilt in his voice again, just like what she had heard last night. Disappointment. She pushed the sunglasses back up her nose.

“I'm sorry Yugi made you go out with me,” she said quietly. “I know he was just trying to be nice, but it's okay. If you want to just call this whole thing off, I understand.”

“What?” he asked, astonished. “Why would I want to do that?”

“You don't seem like you're having any fun.” The glasses slid down her nose again, and she groaned quietly in frustration, adjusting them behind her ears with more force than was probably necessary.

“Those glasses seem like they're bothering you,” Yami said. “Why don't you just remove them?” Amaya adjusted them nervously.

“I thought...you might find it uncomfortable otherwise,” she said quietly. Yami looked at her, taken aback by how distant and upset she seemed to be.

“Why would I be uncomfortable?” he asked. She shifted from side to side, still messing with the sunglasses.

“My eyes. A lot of people are unnerved by my eyes.”

He'd been so caught up in his own head, in his own nerves about being alone with her, he hadn't realized she had been nervous too. He'd never seen her nervous. “I apologize,” Yami said. “I've been rude. I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable. I truly do want to enjoy my time with you. It's just there's so much that I don't know about myself, I get caught up in my own head.” Amaya snickered.

“You're preaching to the choir, bud. You think you don't know anything about yourself? I don't know what my own face looks like.” Yami laughed, but quickly quieted himself.

“I'm sorry. I shouldn't laugh at your condition. I just...I don't even know my own name, or who I was before I became a disembodied spirit of the puzzle. I suppose it's funny to see a different perspective on things.” He shook his head. “You don't need to keep the glasses on if they're bothering you, Amaya. I promise you, I would never be uncomfortable by who you are.” Amaya smiled and slowly removed the sunglasses. When she opened her eyes, they were a wall of frosted glass.

“You know, I think I finally know what it is we should do today,” she said. “We are going to spend the day actually having fun. No weird head space. No pondering over our own existence. We are going to exist in this exact moment and relish every moment of simply _being_. And then-” With a flourish she pulled the Sunday paper from her purse. It was turned to an article in the culture section.

“An Egyptian exhibit at the museum,” he read. “This is perfect! We're sure to find some answers about my past there!”

“I know, I'm great.”

“Amaya, you're wonderful,” Yami said and took her hand, squeezing it. “You're perfect.” Amaya could feel her face growing hot.

“Yeah, yeah,” she replied, flustered, and shook him off. “Let's go already.”

They ended up in a number of places. At the park, Amaya learned Yami was terrible with birds, laughing as they swarmed him and sent him running. At the movies, Yami learned Amaya had a terrible taste in movies. She'd practically dragged him into the theatre to watch something called Curse of the Space Mummy 4. They were laughing about it, wandering down the street going nowhere, when they passed a music shop, and Amaya paused. Yami, realizing she had stopped, looked into the music shop. A soft melody was playing inside.

“Oh, that's new,” Amaya said. “Do you mind?”

“Of course not.” He watched as she bounded inside and then followed.

Inside the store it smelled like lacquer and old wood. The man behind the counter seemed to recognize Amaya immediately, grinning as she pulled up to the counter. He held up a record.

“I didn't know the weather called for a little night rain,” he teased her. “I have a new challenge for you. You'll never get it. I promise.” Amaya grinned wickedly.

“As if. Play it for me.” Yami shuffled his feet behind her. He felt like a stranger butting in someone else's conversation. The man turned to acknowledge him.

“A friend?” he asked. “A _boyfriend_?” he said, leaning towards Amaya. She grunted.

“Just a friend, Marcus. We're having a day out to quell our existential crisis.” Marcus laughed.

“Well any friend of Amaya's is a friend of mine,” he said. He wiggled the record. “How much do you know about music?”

“None,” Yami answered simply. “I play duel monsters.” Marcus hummed.

“Thought you looked familiar,” he said. “I never expected Yugi Moto to step into my store. Well that's alright.” He placed the record on a nearby record player. “You only get to hear it once,” he told Amaya. “That's the rules.” Then he placed the needle on the record, and a song began to play. It was a piano piece, soft but fast. Yami didn't understand it, but the way Amaya closed her eyes as she listened, he could see the gears turning in her mind. As the notes changes, she would scrunch up her face like she was thinking, then relax again, her body bobbing up and down in time with the music. When it finished, Marcus pulled the needle from the record.

“Would you like a practice round?” he asked, but Amaya had already begun to walk away from him, moving towards the back of the small shop, where a piano sat quietly in the corner. She sat at the bench and cracked her knuckles.

“Well someone certainly wants to show off for some reason,” he said, but Amaya ignored him and began to play. For a moment, Yami watched her play in uncomfortable silence, still unsure of what was going on, and then, as the notes began to move faster, he realized she was reproducing the music on the record, note for note. He was astonished.

“Amazing, isn't it?” Marcus whispered to him. “She's got perfect pitch. I've never seen her fail.” They both listened for a minute longer, the music swelling, growing faster, Amaya's fingers flying across the keys as easily as if she'd done this a thousand times. Yami was transfixed. He wasn't sure what this music was, or what it was meant to be, but he could feel it flowing through him as if Amaya's fingers were moving across his own heart, beating in time with the music.

“That's her mother's piano, you know,” Marcus whispered to him. “When she died, the estate donated it to us. No room to keep it. But I made a deal with Amaya. If she could play any music I gave her flawlessly, I wouldn't sell it. She's been coming here for ten years. Not once has she ever made a mistake.”

_When she died..._

Somehow, Yami had known that already. He knew Amaya lived alone. Still, she had never talked about it. And in all that time, longer than he had ever known her, she'd been coming to this little music shop every week, keeping them alive through the music she made on their piano.

_I don't know what my own face looks like..._

But somehow she knew this music she had never heard.

Her body dipped down over the keys, and the notes became softer and sweeter, filling the shop with the sound of a lazy summer day. A deep breath. Her fingers paused for a fraction of a second, but the pause in the music felt jarring, like he had been so prepared to hear more that his body was hyper aware of its absence. And then her fingers slammed down on the keys, louder, pounding, swelling.

And then it was over. The ghost of the last note rang through the shop. Marcus sighed.

“I really thought I'd gotten you with that one,” he said, faking disappointment. “I suppose I'll have to try harder next time.” Amaya lovingly ran her fingers over the keys, carefully replaced the cover, and walked back from the piano. She was smirking.

“Well, it wasn't _exactly_ the same as the record,” Marcus continued. “That bit at the end-” Amaya groaned.

“That's because the end on the record _sucked_. I fixed it.”

“Hmmm,” Marcus pondered. “I don't know. What do _you_ think, Yugi?” Yami was almost too flustered to answer.

“I...” He shook his head. “That was amazing, Amaya. I didn't know you had such an incredible talent!” She shrugged sheepishly, but her smile was pleased.

“Not exactly a lot of pianos at Duelist Kingdom.” She hadn't been sure how he would react, but she had to admit she was pleased by his apparent awe. She said goodbye to Marcus, promised to stop by again next week, and she and Yami left, wandering with no apparent aim once again.

“I'm sure he told you,” she said. “Marcus is a busy body.”

“I'm sorry,” Yami replied. He looked at her, expecting her to be angry or upset about him learning about her past, but Amaya still wore the same pleased smile.

“No need to be,” she said easily. “It's been a long time.” She clasped her hands behind her back as she walked, breathing in the smell of summer. The midday air was warm and pleasant. “My dad was an archaeologist and my mom was a university professor. She taught musical theory and piano, but her real love was ancient music. From the time I was big enough to reach the keys, she taught me that understanding music theory, understanding how people form music, and _why_ we do it is more important than what notes we play. Every human from every culture that has ever lived has had music in some form or another. It was our first step into critical thinking, into understanding that things can be intangible and beautiful. A way to communicate without language. It is the only form of art that replicates our own heart beat, so it's the truest form of human expression.” She smiled sadly. “She used to say civilization began with the beat of a drum.”

“What happened to them?” Yami asked.

“My parents were invited to an archaeological dig in the valley of the kings in Egypt,” Amaya said. “They were carrying artifacts back to the university for study when their plane crashed.”

“I'm so sorry.”

“Like I said, it was a long time ago.” She skipped a few steps ahead of him. “Your turn to pick.”

Yami took interest in a game shop that they passed, grabbing Amaya's hand and eagerly pulling her inside. He immediately began looking through the rows of cards, set upright along shelves and protected by large sleeves.

“Look, Amaya,” he said eagerly. “This shop specializes in helping duelists trade cards with each other! There are some here I've never even seen before!” Amaya played along, following and nodding and expressing her excitement as Yami picked up the cards, telling her how rare or powerful each card was, but the circlet seemed to weigh a thousand pounds in her purse.

“I'm sorry, this is probably really boring you,” Yami finally said. That snapped her out of her thoughts.

“It's not that,” Amaya assured him. “Actually, I do have my own deck.” She unzipped one of her jacket pockets and pulled it out to show him.

“I had no idea,” Yami replied, shocked. “Why haven't you played with any of our friends at school?” Amaya shrugged.

“Playing can be kind of a long ordeal. Since I can't see the field, I need someone to assist me and tell me what's in play. I know any one of them would be willing to do it for me, it's just...” She shrugged. She didn't really know how to explain her reservations about it. The fast paced dueling Yugi and Joey enjoyed, she felt like she would slow them down. And that was just with her own friends. How could she ever enjoy the thrill of dueling someone else when her handicap would be brought up every step of the way?

“I've come up with something different recently,” she said and handed the deck to him. He flipped through the cards.

“Fascinating,” he muttered. “You've punched braille into your card sleeves so that you can read them without damaging them.”

“Yeah, but-”

“Amaya, this is amazing!” he insisted. “This is incredibly clever.” She blushed.

“I haven't tried playing against anyone yet,” she admitted. “I've been too nervous to ask Yugi.” Yami said nothing for a long moment, and then he took her hand and gently urged her out of the shop.

“I think I know where we should go next,” he said quietly. Amaya nodded, too flushed to answer, and let him lead the way.

Yami took her to the dueling arena downtown. Though it was late in the day, there was still a crowd, and Amaya stuck close to Yami's side to avoid bumping into anyone. She had been here once before, when Yugi had dueled Rebecca Hawkins after Duelist Kingdom, but despite the number of times she'd cheered for her friends while they dueled, she'd never used one of the hologram dueling arenas herself. She laughed nervously.

“You can't be serious,” she said and shook her head. “I don't even know how to use one of these things.”

“Of course I'm serious,” Yami replied simply. They each took their place on either side of the arena. Amaya hesitantly stepped onto the podium. As she did, it began to move upward, elevating her high off the ground and clicking into place. She ran her fingers over the computerized playing field in front of her. At first it felt entirely smooth, and instantly she began to worry how she was supposed to play without being able to separate the ten positions where the cards were meant to be placed. Then she felt them, tiny grooves as thin as threads that divided the computer into ten equal sections: five on top for monsters, five on the bottom for magic and and trap cards. She sighed in relief.

“I'm excited to see how you duel, Amaya!” Yami called from his side of the arena, and Amaya couldn't help but laugh.

“What's so funny?” he asked. She shook her head.

“Nothing,” she replied. “I should have known this day couldn't end without a duel!” She shuffled her deck and placed it on the computerized board. “Let's do this!”

“Let's duel!” he replied and they both drew. “I'll go first. I place one card face down and summon Berthomet!” The computers whirred to life, and there was a roar as Berthomet appeared on the field. “And Berthomet's special ability allows me to also summon Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts!” Another roar. Two monsters in one turn. It was a strong first move, but Amaya had witnessed Yami duel plenty of times at this point. She may not be as experienced, but she had one advantage. She knew what his next move would be, but he had no idea what her strategy was. As expected, the next card he played was polymerization, fusing his two monsters into Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast. With 2100 attack points, it had the ability to wipe Amaya out with a single attack.

“Nice move,” she conceded. “Too bad a fusion monster can't attack on its first turn!” Yami smirked.

“You're right. That's why I'll place this card face down and end my turn.”

“My turn then!” Amaya drew. She thought for a short moment, reading each of her cards. Chimera's growling was a constant reminder to her of where its position was on the field. She sighed.

“Oh well,” she said, and placed a monster face down. “I can't ever hope to beat such a beast, so I guess I'll just place this in defense mode and end my turn.” Yami didn't answer for a moment. He seemed to be sizing up the threat, debating his next move.

“Whatever it is,” he finally said. “It is no match for Chimera. Chimera, attack her face down monster!” Amaya's grin was shit eating. “What's so funny?” Yami asked. “Your monster is gone!” As Chimera leaped towards the face down card, revealing its hidden form, his voice changed. “Oh no, that's-”  
“Cyber Jar!” Amaya exclaimed with glee. “And its special ability destroys every monster on the field! Say bye bye to Chimera!” His monster roared in anguish and exploded, leaving the field empty. “Now we'll each draw five cards, and any level four or lower monsters we draw we place on the field!”

“Good move, Amaya!” Yami said as he drew his five cards. “I'm embarrassed to admit I underestimated you. It won't happen again.”

“I'm shocked, Yami, really!” Amaya replied as she drew her five cards. “I would have thought you would already know not to.” He chuckled.

“My mistake,” he said. “You may have destroyed my Chimera, but your cyber jar has allowed me to summon Celtic Guardian to the field, as well as Mystical Elf in defense mode!” The computer whirred to life again. “And Chimera's special ability allows me to return to the field Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts!” So he had three monsters then. Well, no harm done. None of them were strong enough to hurt her. Amaya, too, placed down the cards she had drawn.

“I play Maho Vailo in attack mode and Spirit of the Harp in defense mode!” she said. “Then I play Graceful Charity! This card lets me draw three new cards!” She drew. “Then I'll discard two!” She grinned and waved a card in front of her face for him to see. “This is where the game gets serious. I hope you're ready.”

“Give it your best shot,” he teased. Amaya placed the card on the field.

“I play black pendant! This card gives whichever monster I equip it to 500 extra attack points. And I'm going to equip it to my Maho Vailo! Then I'm going to attack Gazelle!” A swish of cloth as her monster flung its cape behind it, attacking Gazelle with a magical attack, the screech of a dying animal, and Gazelle was gone.

“Nothing to worry about. That was only 550 life points,” Yami said. And then he gasped.

“Now I can't see your face,” Amaya teased, “but my guess is you just saw you most definitely lost more than 550 life points.”

“But how?” Yami asked. “Black pendant only gives your monster 500 extra attack points. That would make its power only 2050!”

“Oh, did I forget to mention his special ability?” she laughed. “Maho Vailo gets an extra 500 attack points for every equip card attached to it. That makes his attack 2550, and you lose 1050 life points!” Yami grunted. She'd just taken out over half his life points with a single attack. He needed to destroy her defenses, and fast, if he wanted to win. Amaya ended her turn, and he drew. He smirked.

“You better have some trick up your sleeve!” Amaya called. “Or else next turn my Maho Vailo will take out the rest of your life points!”

“I'm afraid there won't be a next turn,” Yami said. “I play black hole! This card will destroy every monster on the field!” Amaya cursed as a black hole formed on the field, a wind forming around the entire arena that whipped her hair across her face. The monsters on the field all shrieked in terror as one by one they were pulled into the intense gravity of the hole and shattered.

“Shit,” she muttered. Yami laughed.

“Now your monsters are gone and your life points are wide open for an attack!”

“First things first,” Amaya replied. “Since black pendant was destroyed, you take another 500 life points in damage!” She paused, biting her lip, and in a softer, more nervous voice asked, “I'm sorry, where do our life points stand now?” Yami was taken aback for a second. She had been so confident up until now he'd forgotten she couldn't see the field the way he could.

“The effect of your magic card brings me down to 450,” he said gently. “But I'm about to even the score.” He placed a card onto the field. “Now I summon Feral Imp in attack mode! And I'll attack your life points directly! With 1300 attack points, that brings you down to 700 life points!” Amaya cursed. “Then I'll play Swords of Revealing Light. Now you can't attack my monster for three turns!”

“Stalling for time?” Amaya laughed. “I feel honored the King of Games thinks he needs it.”

“A good duelist knows to wait until he has the right cards,” Yami replied. “Your turn, though I'm afraid you won't be able to do much.” Amaya shrugged and drew.

“I place one card face down, and one monster in defense mode and end my turn.”

“Your face down monster won't protect you for long,” Yami said. “I play horn of the unicorn. This card raises my imp's attack points by 700. Feral Imp, attack her face down monster!” Amaya was unphased.

“Thanks,” she said. “You just destroyed my Magician of Faith. She may have been too weak to stand up to your imp, but your special ability means I can now return one magic card from my graveyard to my hand.” She held up the card she'd chosen for him to see.

“Mystic Box?” Yami asked. “But you never played that card.”

“I sent it to the graveyard when I used Graceful Charity,” Amaya explained. “And I'd watch out if I were you. I've got more tricks up my sleeve.” She drew, and immediately as she read the name on the card she smirked.”Like this, for instance.” She slammed the card down onto the field. “First I place mystical space typhoon to destroy your swords of revealing light! Then I'll play Monster Reborn to bring a monster back from my graveyard! Say hello to Dark Magician Girl!” Yami gasped as the light from Amaya's magic card dissipated, revealing the sugary bright form of her monster as she took the field. The Dark Magician Girl laughed, floating above the dueling field and twirling her wand. He felt a rush of excitement. He had assumed Amaya's nerves in the game shop had meant she was an amateur duelist, but he had been wrong. Despite her inexperience, she was not only keeping up with him, her dueling demanded he meet _her_ expectations. And to find out she held the counterpart to his own Dark Magician...

Still, her Dark Magician Girls attack points were even with his Feral Imp. But wait...As Amaya held up a card from her hand, Yami realized what she planned to do next.

“But wait, there's more!” Amaya exclaimed. “I'll play the mystic box I brought back from my graveyard, and have my lovely magician step inside!” The box materialized on the field, and the Dark Magician girl flew inside it, winking. As it closed, an array of floating swords sliced through it, surely destroying the Dark Magician Girl. But Yami knew this trick well. He'd used it many times with his Dark Magician, and sure enough as the box opened it was not Dark Magician Girl inside but his Feral Imp that had been skewered, destroying it and once again leaving him defenseless.

“With your imp gone, you'll need a miracle to save you from my Dark Magician Girl!” Amaya laughed. “Otherwise next turn she'll destroy you.” She placed a card face down on the field. “But I'm not going to underestimate the king of games. I'll place this face down, just to be safe. Attack her if you dare.” He would have to call her bluff if he wanted any chance of turning this duel around. But to do that he needed to draw the right card....

 _Come on, heart of the cards_....

He peaked at the card he had just drawn. Yes! The Dark Magician! Yami chuckled.

“What's so funny?” Amaya asked.

“If it's a magic show you want, I'm happy to oblige,” he said. “Why don't we pit Dark Magician against Dark Magician?” He summoned his most loyal monster to the field. “With 2500 attack points, he has more than enough to destroy your Dark Magician Girl! Dark Magician, use dark magic attack!” But Amaya grinned. As the ball of black magic consumed her Dark Magician Girl, she flipped the card she had face down on the field.

“I activate Mirror Force!”

“Oh no!” Yami cried. “That means-”

“Your monster's attack is redirected, destroying it and leaving you defenseless!” The dark magic that had consumed Dark Magician Girl flew back at Dark Magician, shattering him.

“And of course, since Dark Magician went to the graveyard, my Dark Magician Girl gets 300 extra attack points. Not that she needs them. She has more than enough strength to finish off your life points!” Yami smirked, and Amaya faltered for a moment. “What's so funny?”

“You may have taken down my Dark Magician,” he replied, “But I'm still going to win this duel.”

“How so?” Amaya asked. “You're defenseless and it's my turn.”

“Why don't we make a little wager then, if you're so confident.” Amaya was quiet for a second, trying to size him up. He had only one card on the field and nothing protecting his life points, but his voice was so sure, so confident, daring her to take his bet. The temptation was too much to resist.

“What do I get if I win?” she asked carefully.

“Whatever you want.” She thought about it for a moment.

“Okay, if I win I want you to call Kaiba and tell him you lost to an amateur during her first duel.” She grinned wickedly. “I bet he'll have a brain hemorrhage.”

“Alright, I accept your condition.” His tone was still so even and self-assured. He said nothing else, and Amaya frowned as she realized he was pushing her to ask. This was his bet, but he was enjoying watching her get wrapped up in it.

“And what is it you want?”

“If I win I get to ask you one question.”

“A question?” What a weird request. Amaya had no idea what he could possibly be thinking. Still, she found herself nodding. “Okay.” She had the feeling she had just willingly stepped into a trap.

“Make your move, then,” Yami urged. She could just attack him with her Dark Magician Girl once again. After all, if he hadn't used that face down card to protect his Dark Magician, it likely wasn't anything that could prevent her attack. Still...it had to be something if he was so sure of winning.

“I play Ill Witch in attack mode!” It was an unnecessary amount of strength, but it was more likely a trap card would only be able to stop one of her monsters, and both had enough attack points to take out the rest of his life points.

“Go, my monsters! Take out the rest of his life points!” She heard their battle cries as they rushed forward for the kill, the contact they made, and yet she didn't hear Yami's life point counter go down to zero. He laughed. “What's so funny?” she snapped. “What did you do?”

“Pay closer attention to the field,” was all he replied. Amaya listened harder and gasped. Of course. She'd been so caught up in listening for what she had expected to hear, she hadn't noticed what was really happening. Now she could hear the high pitched chitter of hundreds of kuribos blocking her attack.

“I combined the kuriboh in my hand with the multiply magic card I had face down on the field,” he explained. “Giving me a wall of kuribohs to block your attacks! My life points are safe.” Shit. Amaya groaned. She should have known better. She had nothing useful in her hand she could lay out on the field, and as both of her monsters had attacked she couldn't switch them into defense mode to protect her life points. She could only hope that whatever he did next turn would not be enough to wipe her out and give her another chance to attack.

But she knew better.

“I end my turn,” she sighed.

“Then it's time for me to end this duel,” Yami said. With a flourish, he held his card aloft before placing it on the field. “I play Monster Reborn!” From the other side of the arena, Amaya groaned. She already knew what was coming. Yami couldn't help but smirk. If she had thought he would go easy on her because it was her first duel, she had been mistaken. Still, he hadn't expected her to be such a strong opponent. As his Dark Magician returned to the field, he could feel his heart pounding with the thrill of the duel. What was it she had said to him earlier?

_Music is the only art that replicates our own heartbeat, so it's the truest form of self expression..._

The way she dueled was like music. He knew card games had a rhythm to them. The energy ebbed and flowed, and a good duelist knew how to control that flow to win. But the way she dueled, the way she handled her cards-she played with that rhythm, not controlling it to keep it in her favor, but savoring its every change, pushing him to challenge her back. He could feel her fingers on his heart once again, making it beat faster. She'd done this twice now today.

“Now that my Dark Magician is back on the field, your Dark Magician Girl loses her 300 extra attack points! And then I'll play this!” His secret weapon. The last piece in this puzzle that would win him this duel. “Book of Secret Arts! It gives my magician an extra 300 attack points, making him strong enough to destroy your Dark Magician Girl _and_ take out the rest of your life points!” It was over. The holograms disappeared. The podiums slowly descended to ground level. When they met back up on the floor, Amaya was frowning.

“What's wrong?” Yami asked. She shrugged.

“I know I shouldn't be too upset,” she sighed. “It's not like losing is that big of a deal. Still, it was my first time playing, so I guess I'm a little embarrassed.” She laughed. “Or maybe it's just for a moment I _really_ believed I could give Kaiba a brain hemorrhage.”

Yami shook his head. “You shouldn't be embarrassed,” he assured her. “That was a great duel. With some practice, you could be a fantastic duelist.” She smiled shyly, and once again Yami felt his heart pound too heavily in his chest.

“So what's your question?” she asked.

“It can wait until later.”

By the time they left the dueling arena, the air had cooled and the sky had gone black. They wandered downtown in silence, not one that was heavy or uncomfortable, but not calm either. A nervous energy hung between them. Amaya wondered if, when she hadn't been paying attention, he'd slipped back into his previous pensive thoughts. Perhaps she'd failed after all. She sighed. She'd known from the beginning Yugi had been wrong to put his faith in her. She was great at distractions, but she was the last person on earth who should be charged with helping another person through the darkness of their own heart. Eventually, Yami stopped in his tracks, leaning against the sidewalk railing and staring down at the water below them. Amaya jumped up on the railing beside him. Yami, alarmed, instinctively reached out a hand to grab her.

“Oh, you think I'll fall?” Amaya teased.

“It's just-I don't want you to lose your balance,” he said. “It's a long way down.” Amaya leaned back further, balancing herself dangerously over the edge. She let go of the rail, pretending to slip back, and as Yami darted forward to catch her, grabbed the rail again, laughing and she righted herself.

“That wasn't funny.”

“Didn't you promise me earlier you wouldn't underestimate me again?” she replied. He sighed.

“I suppose I did.”

She nudged him in the side. “Listen, I don't do things I can't handle,” she said. “But if it'll make you feel better, I'll agree to get down. _After_ you tell me what's wrong.” Yami sighed and looked out over the water. He should have known he couldn't hide anything from her. Amaya had always seemed to be instinctively tuned in to others' feelings. Even without seeing his face, she could read him like an open book.

“I told you this morning that I want to know more about my past,” he said, “but that was only half of it. Part of me wonders if I pretend none of it exists, I can keep things the way they are forever.”

“The way they are?”

“If I could stay in his heart forever..that's what he wants. And if that's what he wants, then part of me wants that too.” Amaya thought about that. Despite Yami's thirst to discover his own identity, his first concern was Yugi. What Yugi wanted. What would make Yugi happy. “Can I ask you a question?”

Why did he sound so nervous? “Shoot,” Amaya answered.

“What is it that you think of Yugi?”

It took Amaya by surprise. “I love Yugi more than anything,” she answered immediately.

“You're..in love with him?” Yami answered. He sounded surprised. And vaguely disappointed? Or was that Amaya's imagination.

“No,” she corrected him. “Not like that. Yugi is my best friend. He was the first person who didn't treat me differently.” She laughed. “The first time he brought a game into school for me, I had so much trouble. I couldn't see the spaces on the board, and even though he was so nice and so patient with me, I got frustrated and flipped the entire thing over. I was so upset because I thought he would hate me for ruining his game, I left the room crying.” She leaned forward, smiling distantly at the memory. “I was so cold to him. I was so scared I'd already lost him as a friend, and I couldn't bare to hear him say he hated me, so I decided I'd be mean to him first. I was awful. Do you know what he did?”

“I can only guess,” Yami replied. Amaya grinned.

“Two weeks later he came into class with a new game he'd made all by himself. He'd spent the entire time learning braille and made an entire game just so I could play. And then he apologized to _me_ for taking so long to complete it. Can you believe that?” Yami chuckled.

“Yes, that is the exact the kind of thing he would do.” He shook his head. “I didn't know about today at all. I'm not sure how he kept it from me, but when I saw him getting so excited about all of..well, this,” he gestured towards himself, emphasizing the metallic jingle of the bracelets on both of his wrists, “I thought he was dressing up to impress Tea. But then he said no, and-” He paused, unsure of what he was about to say, but when he looked over at Amaya and saw how though she wasn't looking directly at him, she was still leaned towards him to show she was listening, how she kicked her feet in lazy contentment, how bright the street lights were caught in her hair, he continued. “I thought he was going out with you,” he confessed. “And I was jealous.” He paused with baited breath for her reaction.

And Amaya doubled over in laughter.

That..wasn't what he had been expecting. Yami watched in nervous silence as Amaya slid down from the railing, falling to the sidewalk in a fit of giggles. She put her head between her knees, took a deep, guttural breath, and then raised her head, shaking the hair out of her face.

“Oh _man_ ,” she finally said. “Yugi kills me sometimes.”

“I'm afraid I don't understand,” Yami admitted. Amaya raised her head towards him.

“Yugi put so much effort into making sure you looked good,” she explained. “He wanted to make sure everything was _perfect_.”

“I suppose I didn't think about it like that,” Yami said, but he realized she was right. While he had been worried about how to make Yugi happy, Yugi had done everything in his power to try and make him happy. “But...I still don't understand what's so funny.” A stupid grin broke out across Amaya's face. She was desperately trying to hold back from falling into fits of laughter again.

“Because I can't see what you're wearing.” As that realization sank in, Amaya gave in and began laughing again. Tears streamed down her face. “He set you up on a _literal_ blind date.” Now Yami was laughing too. He couldn't help it. It was all so absurd. As he laughed, he glanced down at her, and in that moment with her hair a frizzled mess around her face and her cheeks red and puffy from laughing until she cried, somehow she was more beautiful to him than ever. This was the Amaya that Yugi cherished so dearly, unabashedly honest and full of life. And because Yugi idolized that vision of her, Yami had been eager to get closer to her as well. He had tried to keep that desire hidden. He knew well his partner's feelings for Tea, and until recently his relationship with Yugi had been so entangled, Yami had not thought of much else than doing whatever he could to make Yugi's deepest wishes come true. But they were not the same person, no matter how close their goals and their minds might be, and as Yami had become weighed down with the burden of discovering who he was outside of Yugi, his partner had sent him the one person who he had trusted to help.

Amaya had said to him earlier she thought Yugi had been mistaken for thinking she could help him. She couldn't have been more wrong. She had always seemed to know that he and Yugi were separate. She knew how to engage his most competitive urges. She understood why all of this was so important to him. She knew how to make none of it matter. How someone could read him so well and understand herself so little, he wasn't sure. But he was glad she was here. He was glad Yugi had given him this moment.

“I'm ready to ask you that question now,” he said more seriously. Amaya's laughter quieted. She stood.

“I thought the Yugi thing _was_ your one question.”

“I never said that,” he replied cheekily. Amaya huffed.

“That's cheating.”

“I didn't say I play fair.”

“Fine then,” she conceded. “But you know what, as a consolation prize for losing, I want to ask a question too.”

“A consolation prize? I don't think that's how bets work.”

“I am _very_ upset by the fact I didn't get to see you make fun of Kaiba.” Yami laughed.

“Alright then,” he agreed. “But only if you promise to answer honestly.”

“You were right to insist on that.” Amaya smirked. “I had every intention of being sarcastic. Ask away.”

“What is it you think of me?”

Amaya's heart dropped into her gut. She hadn't expected him-if she had known he would-ugh, this was too much. He wanted her to be honest with him, but the truth was so weird and uncomfortable and unfamiliar territory for her. What if he thought differently of her once he knew? She realized the minutes were stretching on, and with every one of them the air between them was growing tenser.

“I...” The words felt so heavy in her mouth. She wished he would back away from her. He was close enough for her to hear how his breath hung to her every word, how his fists tensed around the metal railing. “You talk a lot about dreams and destiny,” she finally said. “About what your purpose is. My whole life, I never had those things. I didn't even notice they weren't there. And then you showed up and...” She sighed and leaned her head against the rail. Though she could not see it, she looked out towards the ocean and she knew the water was deep and endless. “I don't know how to explain it. It was like I realized there had always been a hole inside of me, and around you it wasn't full, but I could feel the ghost of what used to be there, like the ache of a phantom limb. And..I don't know what that means.”

She waited for him to answer, but for a long moment Yami wasn't sure how to. He was taken aback by her answer. Much like how she had been uncharacteristically nervous about her eyes this morning, this was a side of her he had never seen before. Amaya took a deep breath.

“But,” she said, “I want to know what it means.”

“Amaya...” He couldn't help but be in awe with her in this moment. Who was this sad and mysterious woman he had thought he'd known?

“Now it's my turn to ask you a question,” she said. The street lamps lit her hair ablaze. Her eyes were the color of the moon. They gazed across the water, and though they saw nothing, they were alive with the tide of her thoughts.

“Anything,” he answered immediately.

“What color are your eyes?”

“Violet,” he responded. “Why do you want to know?” Amaya hands moved to her bag, clutching it as if she might open it. Her knuckles were white.

“Because...”

“Amaya, please,” Yami coaxed. “You can tell me anything. What's bothering you?”

“I...” She held the bag close to her chest. “I saw that color for the first time last night.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Date part 2

The words didn't process at first.

“You..saw it?” he repeated, but the words had almost no meaning. They felt like a puzzle, a riddle he had to solve, because to take them at face value would be impossible. He wished she would turn to face him; with her face still trained on the ocean, he could not begin to read her pensive expression. Slowly, Amaya unclasped her bag, and from inside she pulled something shining and gold. It was a crown of some sort, made entirely of overlapping gold pieces that slowly rose at the center to form the eye of Horus. The same eye that was also carved into the millennium puzzle.

“Is that...” he whispered in awe.

“I don't know _what_ it is,” Amaya replied. Yami gently touched the crown, and Amaya gladly handed it over to him to inspect. As he took it, the millennium puzzle began to glow. He was sure of it now. As he held the crown in his hands, he could feel the ancient magic pulsing inside of it, writhing like a sleeping beast.

“Amaya...this is a millennium item,” he said softly. “How did you come to possess it?”

“Someone sent it to me,” she answered. “I just found it last night on my doorstep with a cryptic note.” She did finally turn towards him. “The letter was written in braille. Whoever sent it to me knew I'm blind. But...” She bit her lip. “Yami, I don't _know_ anyone who could have sent this to me. I have no family, no relatives oversees, no other friends besides you and the gang. Whoever sent this to me knew where I live.”

“You said you _saw_ something?” Yami asked. This time, Amaya did not provide an answer immediately. She held her hand out for the crown, and when Yami handed it over placed it gently on her head. The metal was cool to the touch, but as the eye slipped into place above her forehead, she could feel a deep power within it, filling her body with warmth.

“Take your deck and draw seven cards,” she instructed. Yami did so.

“You drew Monster Reborn, Summoned Skull, Kuribo, Magical Hats, Spell Binding Circle, Celtic Guardian, and Polymerization.” Yami stared in disbelief down at his hand. She was right, down to the order he drew them in, but...

“Does the crown allow you read minds?” Amaya didn't answer. Gently, she removed the crown from her head. She took one step, stumbled, and keeled over, just barely managing to grab the rail to steady herself. Yami immediately jumped to grab her, placing a supportive hand between her shoulder blades as she regained her breath.

“Sorry,” she mumbled. “It's really disorienting.” It clicked.

“It allows you to see through other people's eyes,” Yami said. Amaya nodded. The dizziness having subsided, she stood and smoothed down her skirt.

“I've never been sighted before,” she explained. “To me, the world looks like what the back of your head looks like to you. My brain doesn't understand how to handle all of this new stimuli, and when I go back behind my own eyes it's like it starts reeling, trying to claw at what it just had. It makes me dizzy. This time wasn't as bad as last night, though. I think with some practice I could get used to it.”

Yami's mind was reeling, trying to piece together the information she was giving him. “You said last night you saw...me?” he asked. She nodded.

“I was sitting in the kitchen trying to figure out what the damn thing was, and I thought about how I wished Yugi were there to tell me and _bam_!” She snapped her fingers. “Suddenly I was staring at myself in the mirror. Except it wasn't me. And I've never seen _anything_ before.” Amaya's hands tightened around the crown. “And then I saw...well, I guess it was you.”

A cold wind blew, but Yami barely noticed. Perhaps he should have paid more attention...

“I don't think this is just about seeing. You don't have a corporeal form when you're not the one controlling Yugi's body,” Amaya mused. “You're a part of the puzzle, but you're also a part of Yugi. Two souls that share one heart. I thought he was the only one who can see or speak to you in that form.”

“Yugi and I can always sense each other's presence,” Yami explained. “It's more than just a physical connection. It's the bond between us.”

“So if it were just his eyes I was borrowing, I wouldn't have been able to see or hear you last night, because there was nothing physically there for me to see or hear.” She shook her head. The crown was cold in her hands, the warmth and power it had possessed earlier dormant once again. “What _is_ this thing?”

“I'm not sure either, but it looks like we both have questions that need to be answered now,” Yami said. “I think it's time we go visit the museum.”

***

The museum was unnaturally quiet, their footsteps echoing down the hall far ahead of them. Amaya squeezed the crook of Yami's arm tighter. As they continued to walk, the silence between them grew, until it became so immense Amaya wasn't sure how to break it. Nothing among the exhibits seemed to satisfy Yami. He passed each one without so much as a twitch of hesitation, and as Amaya wasn't sure what they were looking for in the first place, she reluctantly followed without complaint.

And then he stopped.

“What's up?” she finally asked. He urged her forward, down a staircase. Amaya got the sense that wherever it led, it was not an open part of the exhibit.

“I feel something calling out to me down there,” he said as he led her down the stairs. “I feel the answers I seek are near.” They reached the bottom of the stairs, and Yami gasped.

“On this stone tablet..that man looks just like me,” he said in disbelief.

“I'm going to have to take your word for it,” Amaya responded.

“Oh, yes, of course,” Yami said apologetically. “Amaya, use the crown again. I think you'll find this interesting.” She frowned, annoyed, but pulled the crown from her purse and placed it on her head. The feeling of suspending a few feet above her own body was quicker this time, and she felt herself settle into place behind Yami's eyes. Now she could see a great stone tablet stood before them, images and letters carved across its surface. At the center were two men battling one another. Yami's eyes were fixed on the one to the right.

“He's wearing the millennium puzzle,” he said.

“He has your ridiculous hair,” Amaya added. “But what is it?”

“It's me,” he said. “I'm sure of it, though I can't explain why. But who is it that I'm dueling? What was this ancient game? Was it even a game?” Amaya scanned the stone tablet once again, searching for some clue- _any_ _clue-_ about the crown on her head, but all she saw was Yami, the millennium puzzle, the dark magician above his head, and the man who stood across from him battling with the blue eyes white dragon. There was nothing here for her.

She felt a tinge of disappointment, but said nothing. Today was not about her.

Amaya heard footsteps on the stairs behind them and turned. “Pharaoh, I've been expecting you.” Yami turned at the sound of a woman's voice, and as he did Amaya saw a woman with dark hair standing in the doorway. Around her neck was a golden necklace with the eye of horus. Another millennium item.

“Who are you?” Yami asked.

“I am Ishizu, and I have uncovered many mysteries about you using the power of my millennium necklace.”

“Millennium necklace?” Amaya repeated.

“Yes,” Ishizu answered. “Much like your millennium puzzle, my Pharaoh, or your crown, my queen, my necklace provides me with certain powers. With it, I have gazed five thousand years into the past, to a time when evil sorcerers threatened to destroy the entire world.” Through Yami's eyes, Amaya saw him cast a glance in her direction.

“My _what_ now?” Amaya asked in awe. Ishizu stepped closer to them, her eyes on the stone tablet before them.

“It is described in the Egyptian book of the dead that sorcerers would use their magic to seal demonic spirits into stone tablets. They would then battle with one another using these creatures. In Europe, the images of these duels were used to create the tarot cards. When Maximilian Pegasus found them, he used them to create Duel Monsters.” They had heard this before. Pegasus had told them so himself in duelist kingdom when he had told them how he had come to possess the millennium eye.

“But when the power of these duels fell into the hands of an evil sorcerer, they threatened to destroy the entire world,” Ishizu continued. “Only one king possessed a powerful enough magic to defeat that evil. Each one of the millennium items contains a piece of his memory. _Your_ memory, my pharaoh.”

“My memory?” Yami repeated. Amaya felt her blood chill. There it was again, that feeling of emptiness inside of her, aching with the ghost of something she could not remember.

“You look distressed, my queen,” Ishizu said. She kept saying that: _queen_. Amaya shook her head.

“What are you talking about with all this queen shit?” Amaya asked. She pointed at the tablet. “That's Yugi on that rock, but that has nothing to do with me!” As she said it, the crown became hot on her head, the magic inside of it awakened by her anger. It squirmed and festered until it consumed her completely. She was no longer looking through Yami's eyes. She wasn't even standing on the museum floor.

“Ah,” Ishizu's voice said from beside her. “It appears the necklace and crown have reacted to one another. They have something to show you.” A hot wind whipped her hair across her face. Show her? Amaya saw nothing, and when she tried to jump into Ishizu's eyes, nothing happened. She remained suspended, separate from her body but unable to jump anywhere, stuck in whatever place the crown had brought her. A voice spoke from far below.

“I challenge the Pharaoh! Let him stand and fight me! Or is he a coward?” Breathing. The quiet laugh of a woman and the musical tap of a staff against wood. Far below, guards cursed as they moved to block the challenger, their swords drawn.

“How dare you?” one guard snarled. “What makes you think you can just barge in here and threaten your Pharaoh?”

“Let him pass.” Amaya froze. That was Yami's voice.

“How?” she asked weakly, and from beside her Ishizu hummed in recognition.

“Yes, we are in a memory from five thousand years ago. It seems the millennium necklace seeks to quell your doubt.” Amaya didn't answer. She didn't know how. Her attention turned back to the voices below.

“But sir,” another guard said, “he's already ransacked several rooms in the palace. He's killed three guards. He should be slaughtered where he stands.” Yami-or the pharaoh, Amaya supposed- seemed unperturbed.

“You may challenge my court, if you wish. But I assure you, should you choose to do so, you shall not leave here with your life.”

“I don't fear you,” the thief spat. The pharaoh laughed.

“Oh no, it's not me you should be afraid of,” he agreed. The tapping ceased. Feet shuffled in the rafters. “I'm sure she'll be along any second now.” The woman who had been hiding in the rafters, watching the scene below, jumped, and as she did Amaya felt her spirit jump with her. As the woman's feet hit the ground, her soul slammed into her. She now felt the memory around her as if it were part of her own flesh. The stone under her feet was cool to the touch. The staff in her hand was solid. The adrenaline that burned in this woman's blood coursed through her own veins.

“You called?” she asked.

“You always insist on making an entrance, don't you?” the Pharaoh said, amused. The thief cursed.

“You expect me to battle the court's common _bitch_?” he snarled. Behind her, the pharaoh stood abruptly. She could feel his anger on her back. The guards, reacting to his rage, moved forward once again, closing in around the thief with their weapons bared.

“You do not speak to your queen in such a manner,” one of them said, but she held up her hand, motioning for them to back down, and they did. She was used to such talk.

“You shall duel me,” she insisted. “And I promise you, my bite is _much_ worse than my bark.” The pharaoh, who had remained standing despite her warning, hesitantly sat back down. She took her place at the center of the room, waiting for her opponent to decide his fate. The thief cursed once again, but this time she could feel the tension in his throat. As he took his place across from her, his steps were unsure. But it was too late to back down now. He had already dug his own grave. She twirled the staff in her hand in anticipation.

“I summon Shadow Dragon!” the thief cried. Magic swelled through the room, and there was a great shriek as his monster appeared, its breath filling the chamber with a hot and fowl fume. How easy. She stopped twirling the staff, holding it aloft over one of the stone panels in the floor. She'd done this so many times now, she barely felt the flicker of magic that ran from her staff into the ground. She and her monster had fought side by side together so many times now it felt like they were almost a single being. All she had to do was whisper to it from the depths of their shared heart....

“Dark Magician Girl,” she ordered sweetly, “Take him out.” The stone tablet rose, and from it her most loyal monster appeared. The Dark Magician Girl laughed, and the two of them raised their magic staffs as one. The room was consumed by the heat of their attack....

And Amaya was back in the museum, cold and empty once more.

Yami stared at her. He had seen it too, the memory from his long forgotten past. He had seen the woman swathed in veils and gold, the millennium crown shining bright on her head. There had been no mistaking it. He had seen Amaya in those furious eyes.

“The Pharaoh's queen was a powerful sorcerer in her own right, and it was with their combined power that they were able to overcome the evil that threatened the entire world,” Ishizu said. She touched the necklace against her collarbone. “There is nothing in this world left of her except for the visions of the past my millennium necklace allows me to see and the crown she wore.”

“That's...impossible,” Amaya replied, but her voice caught an octave high.

“That crown came to you by no mistake,” Ishizu assured her. “Do not fear its power. The millennium items choose those worthy to possess them. And the millennium crown will accept only one owner.”

_To our queen, the star that breaks the night..._

“If you seek answers about your past,” Ishizu said, “You must collect the millennium items and return them to the Tablet of the Pharaoh's memories. Only then will you truly know your ancient past and your destiny...” Amaya wasn't listening anymore. Ishizu's calm and even voice were merely a hum in the background of her thoughts. As Yami held on to ever word in rapture, she was backing as far away as she could mentally. This was too much. Too strange, even for a boy sharing his body with a spirit trapped in a puzzle. It had been okay when it had only been Yugi. She had been content to be on the sidelines. But the empty hole inside of her ached after that vision of the past. When the queen's memory had evaporated, a piece of her had gone with it.

“There is a duel monster's tournament beginning shortly,” Ishizu said. “My brother will be joining it in order to obtain the last Egyptian God card. He holds the last millennium item, but he seeks to use it for evil. It is of vital importance that he not get his hands on all three Egyptian God cards. I suspect if you enter this tournament, not only will you be able to save the world from his vengeance, you shall find the answers you seek about your lost memories.” She turned away from them. “Farewell, my Pharaoh and my Queen.”

She left, but Amaya and Yami still stood there, and everything had changed. Yami stared at her, at the crown clutched tightly enough in her hands to leave imprints across her palms, at the shadow that had crossed over her face. There was no doubting it. As surely as he looked upon the ancient stone tablet and knew the pharaoh carved on it was his true identity, he knew the vision Ishizu had shown them had been real. He felt a sense of relief that the connection he felt to her was not an imprint of Yugi's feelings but his own. They were _real._ So why did she look so afraid?

“I need to go,” Amaya said shakily. Without waiting for him, she turned and headed back up the stairs. Yami took one last look at the ancient table. The visage of his own face stared back at him, but nothing more. No memories. No name.

Amaya was waiting for him on the steps outside. It was dark now, and the entirety of Domino City was lit by thousands of lights that made the streets glow. The water in the museum fountain rippled with liquid gold. Amaya sat with her head resting in her hands, her eyes closed, the crown on her head once again. The flickering lights across its wadjet eye made it appear to almost blink.

“I've never seen them before,” she said quietly as Yami sat down beside her. “All of these lights. I don't even know what color to call them.” He didn't know how to respond to that, so instead he waited for her to continue. “For a moment...when I became a part of that memory...when I became-” She couldn't say the word. Not queen. “When I became _her_ , for that one moment I felt complete. The hole in me never existed.” She clutched her heart. “Now I feel the wind blowing through me.” Her hands slid over her eyes. “What the hell is wrong with me?”

“Amaya, I...” He reached out and gently took her face in his hands. “Please, don't hide your face.” Reluctantly, Amaya dropped her hands into her lap. “There is nothing to be afraid of. You told me you wanted to know what that feeling inside of you meant. The fact that our pasts are entwined is only further proof that that means something. Perhaps, if we both enter this tournament we might both find the answers we seek.” Amaya frowned.

“I can't enter that tournament,” she said.

“Why not?” She didn't know how to put words to it. There was a lingering sense of dread in her heart, and when she thought of dueling it squeezed painfully in her chest. But the same pain didn't come to her when she thought of the world at stake. It was so much simpler than that...

“Amaya, what is it you're afraid of?”

“I'm no noble and powerful queen, Yami,” she said. “I'm just a sixteen year old girl who's good at pretending things don't bother me, but inside I'm always scared and angry at the people around me. People who think because of my disability they can use me, or pity me, or intimidate me. For as long as I can remember, I've had to pretend to be tough to protect myself. But duel monsters...”

Amaya thought back to that old and distant memory of the first game Yugi had ever tried to play with her. How she had become so frustrated with herself that she had thrown it off of the table. How she had told Yugi she hated him even though he hadn't done anything wrong because she had hated herself. How he had made a game just for her. How in the years since, she'd never once asked him to play duel monsters with her, even though she loved the game so much, because she was scared she couldn't keep up.

“You know, for someone who's so good at reading others, you don't see yourself very clearly,” Yami said, surprising her. “I promised you during our duel that I wouldn't underestimate you, and I didn't. I gave you my all. It took all I had just to keep up with you.” His thumb caressed her cheek. “If you love something, go for it.” She could feel the tension in his fingers, as if he was afraid to touch her further. He hesitated for a second and then said, “And if it means anything, even though I don't remember my past life, I know exactly why I fell in love with you then.” Her entire face flushed. She reached up to cover his hand over her cheek with her own.

“I'm sorry,” she whispered. His hands froze against her skin. She could feel how they became rigid at her words. Her heart beat painfully in her chest. “I know learning about your past was a big step for you. I know learning about your destiny gives you something solid to hold on to. But for me...” She took a deep breath and pulled his hand away from her cheek. “For me this is new and scary and I just don't know how to work through all of this at once. I need time to sort through all of these feelings.” Yami nodded.

“I understand,” he said, letting go of her hand. “And until then I promise I will be with you in this tournament every step of the way. As a friend.” Amaya sighed.

“I'd like that,” she said softly. “Walk me home?”

 


	4. Chapter 4

The chain link fence clanged sharply as Joey planted his foot on it. “Nyah, Kaiba's holding a tournament? How come I didn't know about it?” They had all gathered on the school roof for their lunch break. The gang laughed at his rage.

“Because only _true_ duelists get to know about secret tournaments,” Tristan said. Yugi chuckled at that, and Joey whipped his head around to face him.

“Yug, are you gonna enter?” He nodded.

“Yup. My other self seems really determined to enter,” he said. “He said it's our destiny.”

“Wha?”

“Well, it's kind of a long story.”

“Tell me, I got nothin better to do.”

“Well...okay. So-”

Tea scooted closer to Amaya, who rather than eating her lunch, was flicking grains of rice out of her bento box and over the fence. “So,” Tea said quietly, “How was your date with the other Yugi yesterday?”

Amaya groaned. “Who told you about that?”

“Yugi did, of course.” Tea laughed. “So come on, spill the details!” Amaya groaned, picking up another grain of rice and flicking it into the void. She'd had terrible dreams last night, full of hot sand and echoing chambers and screams.

“There's nothing to tell. We hung out, and then we dueled, and then we went to the-”

“Wait, you _dueled_?” Tea asked loudly, breaking up Yugi and Joey's conversation. “Like Duel Monsters dueled?” Amaya's eyes widened.

“You know what, now that you mention it, Tea, that date would have been one hundred and twenty percent better if we had actually dueled with swords. Cards are so weak in comparison.” Tea brushed off the comment.

“I didn't know you even played! Why haven't you brought it up before?”

“Wait!” Joey scrambled over to them. “Amaya, you play Duel Monsters? Since when?”

“Since I decided to join Kaiba's tournament yesterday.” Joey shifted uncomfortably.

“But uh..” he grumbled, “I mean, I don't mean to be rude or anythin', Amaya, but uh how do you plan on competing?”

“With a forty card deck with at least one rare card in it like everybody else.”

“No, I mean because you're new to playin. Don't you think a tournament with an ante is a bit more than you can handle?” Amaya snorted.

“Joey, you entered Duelist Kingdom with absolutely no knowledge of how type advantage works and exactly one trap card in your entire deck.” She smirked. “I think I'll be fine.” Tristan snickered.

“She's got you there, man.” They all laughed.

“I think Amaya will do just fine,” Yugi said. “I didn't see the duel yesterday, but the other me seems very impressed.” Amaya felt her face grow hot.

“Whatever,” she said, turning away from them suddenly. “It's not like his opinion matters or anything.” Tea snickered.

“Oh yeah, not at all.”

“This is why guys don't like you,” Joey said. “They think you're too aggressive.” Amaya turned back to him, her nostrils flared, her lips pulled back in a snarl.

“ _Excuse me_?”

“See, that's exactly what I mean! Learn to act more like a girl!”

“Joseph, I would rather _die_ than take relationship advice from the guy who dreams about wearing a dog costume for Kaiba.”

“What the hell did you just say, you crazy tsundere!”

“Eat dick, you furry!” They were standing only a few inches apart now, their teeth bared, fists held up like both of them were considering the punch but neither wanting to be the one to give in first.

“Guys, guys,” Yugi said, “Come on, lunch is over. Let's forget about it and go back to class.” Joey and Amaya held their ground. A beat. And they both lowered their fists and stepped away from each other. Yugi, Tea, and Tristan all sighed in relief. It wouldn't have been the first time the two of them had gotten into a fight. It didn't happen often, but when it did things tended to break.

“Well if lunch is over, why don't we go register for that tournament?” Joey asked, standing as well. “I wanna get a hold of that new duel disk and wipe the floor with Kaiba's stupid, smug face!”

“Hold your horses, Joey,” Tristen said. “We'll get in trouble if we skip trigonometry-”

“I second Joey's motion!” Amaya added. “Fuck triangles! I don't even know what a triangle is!”

“Well...I guess it couldn't hurt to go now,” Tea mumbled.

“That's three against one! Majority verdict reached!” Amaya turned sharply and made her way towards the roof access door. “I'll meet you guys by the gate,” she said, hoping her face wasn't nearly as red as it felt. “I left all my stuff in the music room.”

They all met at the gate in front of the school. It was almost too easy to skip class. None of them walked into a single teacher on their way out, and soon they were walking down the street, headed downtown to a game shop rumored to be selling duel disks. Joey ran ahead of the group, too excited to stay in line despite having no idea where they were going. Tristan and Tea were close behind, teasing him mercilessly, but Yugi and Amaya trailed behind the others. To anyone looking, it just appeared like Yugi was guiding her down the street, but he had really hung back from the others to speak with her in more relative privacy.

“Hey Amaya,” he said softly. “Thanks for taking Yami to the museum yesterday. I knew you could help.”

“I didn't expect ancient Egyptian Pharaoh who saved the world from five thousand years of darkness when I agreed to go,” she grumbled. “I was thinking more like lunch and, _maybe_ a movie.”

 

Yugi laughed. “So you _did_ want to hang out with him?” he asked cheekily. Amaya snorted.

“Say another word, Mutou, and you're _dead_.” He brushed off the comment.

“Listen,” he said seriously, “I know it's not any of my business, but Yami told me about the crown...and what Ishizu told you.” Amaya said nothing, so he continued. “Do you remember what it is you said to me at Duelist Kingdom?”

“That I hate it here and I want to go home?”

He laughed. “No. By the lake that first night.”

Amaya remembered the night well. That had been the day Joey had dueled Mai, and despite her initial antagonism towards them, when it came time to camp out for the night she had joined them and shared her food with them. When they had all settled down for the night, Amaya had decided to walk off by herself to the nearby lake, hoping to put her feet in the water and have a moment alone. She had felt so lost and exhausted in the last several days, and whenever Yugi had transformed into his other self and everyone had just kept calling him Yugi it had made everything so much worse. Like she didn't know who was standing next to her anymore. Like a secret was being kept from her.

And Mai, in her infinite meddling wisdom, had tricked Yugi into meeting her at the lake.....

_“Hey, Mai said you wanted to talk to me about something?” Yugi asked. Amaya didn't turn to acknowledge him, but she scooted over, making room for him to sit beside her._

_“So what was it you wanted to talk about?”_

_“Don't you think if I wanted to talk to you, I would have just told you and not Mai?”_

_“Yeah, that's why I came anyway. You don't want to talk about it, but I know you have something to say....”_

“I asked you if we had known each other long enough for you to trust me to know who you are,” Amaya said. Yugi nodded. “And you said yes.”

“So I have the same question for you now,” Yugi said. “Do you trust me?” Amaya didn't answer immediately. She reached into her bag with her free hand and pulled out the millennium crown. She had been keeping it there all day, too afraid to let it out of her sight but just as much afraid to wear it.

“Yugi, I don't even know if I trust me to know myself anymore,” she sighed.

“I think that means you should _really_ trust me then.” The crown was faintly warm, pulsing in Amaya's hands like the eye was blinking. “You're still Amaya,” Yugi said. “You're a little sad and unreasonably stubborn, and you don't know it but you still have a scar across one of your knuckles from that time you punched Joey when he stole my millennium puzzle.” He reached out and pushed the millennium crown closer to her, so now she was holding it against her chest, where she could feel the magic swelling and growing warmer, beating in time with her heart. “You're one of my best friends,” Yugi said, “I'm sure the feelings you had before yesterday were real, and no ancient rock or magical Egyptian artifact is going to change that. You deserve to have answers for them. Just listen to what your heart tells you it wants.” They stopped walking now, having reached the game store they were looking for. Joey was already by the window, drooling as he looked in on a display model duel disc sitting in the window. He pawed at it hungrily.

“I'm just gonna play dumb,” he was telling Tristan.

“ _Play_ dumb?”

Amaya took a deep breath and placed the crown slowly on her head. For the briefest second she felt the sensation of rising out of her own body, and then that small piece of her slipped into Yugi's and she could feel how he looked at her with total trust and determination, and see how her own face looked back at her, her eyes pitted with exhaustion, anxiety carved into every line of skin. But the crown sat gleaming and golden upon her forehead, and something stirred-not in her, but in Yugi, at the sight of it. She couldn't hear his thoughts, but the piece of her soul attached to him in this one second was enough to sense Yami's presence inside of him, and the inkling of feeling she could read from it was enough for her to sense what he thought of her in this moment. _Regal. Alive. Beautiful_. Ways in which she did not feel about herself.

But...she wanted to.

She slipped back into her own body and tried to retain that feeling of awe. To have as much confidence in herself as he had in her. It didn't come, but she could feel the warm power of the crown flowing through her, and she could almost remember what it felt like.

“Right now my heart is telling me it wants to leap right out of my throat,” Amaya answered. “Let's do this.”

 


	5. Chapter 5

They all entered the shop together, and as the door opened a little bell rang. Inside it was clean and empty, smelling more like packing tape and unopened boxes than anything else. Amaya caught a faint whiff of fresh paint and saw dust, like part of the store was still under construction. The entire atmosphere made her feel uncomfortable. When Yugi had mentioned at school the rumor he'd heard about the store, it had sounded odd that a shop had seemingly appeared overnight that he hadn't known about. But this place really did feel like it had just been erected while everyone was asleep, like a circus tent.

“May I be of some assistance?” the store keeper asked.

“Yes,” Yugi replied. “We heard this is the place to register for Battle City and get a duel disc. Is that true?”

“You're in luck,” the shop keeper replied. “I happen to have three duel discs left on my shelf. But first I need to see if you qualify for registration.”

“Okay, well my name is Yugi Mutou.” The clacking of keys on a keyboard. The computer on the front counter hummed.

“Ah, yes,” the shop keeper said, turning the screen around for them to see. “You have five stars. That's the highest rank. And here it shows the rarest card you've ever played in a duel, the Dark Magician.” The gang all gasped.

“But how does it know all of this information?” Yugi asked.

“Mr. Kaiba has gone to extreme lengths so that only the most worthy may enter his tournament,” the shop keeper answered. “All of the hologram duelig arenas designed by Kaiba Corp come with a memory chip that can record each and every card played by any duelist who uses it. So we have been able to compile extensive information about all of the partcipants' decks.”

“But knowing every card in our decks gives Kaiba an unfair advantage,” Yugi said.

“Not cool,” Tea agreed.

“But,” the shop keeper added, and held out a duel disc for Yugi. “As promised, since you qualify you receive a Kaiba Corp new and improved duel disc system!” Yugi reached out for it hesitantly. He had no choice but to take it-it was far too important for his other self to enter this tournament for his lost memories-but taking it felt like giving Kaiba an excuse.

“It doesn't matter anyway,” Amaya assured him. “With the new 'super expert' rules in place for the tournament, we'll all have to do a complete rehaul of our decks anyway. And Kaiba _already_ knows how you play.”

“I suppose you're right,” Yugi sighed. Joey immediately shoved him out of the way.

“My turn, my turn,” he said eagerly. “I wanna register too! Joey Wheeler's the name!” The clacking of keys again. Joey leaned over the counter, uncomfortably close to the shop keeper's face, to look at the computer screen.

“I'm sorry Joey, you only have one star. Your rank is far too low to qualify.”

“WHAT? KAIBA, THAT SON OF A BITCH RIGGED THESE RANKS! I CAME IN SECOND AT DUELIST KINGDOM!”

“Yeah, but Joey you forgot one thing,” Tristan pointed out. “Kaiba hates you.” As Joey continued to rage, the shop keeper turned his attention back to his computer. Amaya hummed suspiciously under her breath and tapped Yugi on the shoulder, but before he could ask what was wrong, the shop keeper had turned the computer back around for Joey to see.

“I'm sorry Joey, it looks like my computer malfunctioned. You have four stars. Here's your duel disc.” Joey immediately scooped it up from him.

“Alright! I knew I qualified! That's how I was able to stay cool and relaxed while he fixed it!”

“Cool?” Tristan repeated dubiously.

“And relaxed,” Tea snickered.

“I'm next,” Amaya said and stepped forward. “Amaya Hisakawa.”

“Are they even gonna have data for you?” Joey asked. “You aint ever dueled before yesterday.” The shopkeeper once again checked his computer.

“In fact we do,” he said. “Four stars. And the Dark Magician Girl, I see. It must have been some duel for Mr. Kaiba to have ranked you so highly.”

“Hey, what's that in the corner?” Tea asked, pointing at the screen. In the right hand corner where Amaya's name was written, there was a small symbol.

“Oh, of course,” the shop keeper said. “Please excuse me for a moment, Amaya. I shall return shortly with your duel disc.” He ducked into the back of the shop, and as he did the smell of paint and sawdust became stronger for a moment. When he returned, he had a duel disc box in his arms just like the one Yugi and Joey had been given. But that was odd. There was a perfectly good duel disc sitting right behind him on the shelf.

“Why did you need to go in back for it?” Amaya asked as she took it from him.

“As I said before, Mr. Kaiba has taken everything into account. This marker by your name indicates a duelist with a special accommodation that needs to be met. Mr. Kaiba has designed a select number of duel discs that have been altered to meet such accommodations.”

“What now?” Amaya asked, dumbfounded.

“You'll find your duel disc has a voice command artificial intelligence installed, which via the provided ear piece will relate to you the current state of the field, how many cards your opponent currently has in their hand, and relate to you the information of any card on the field that has been revealed to you or that you have placed on the field. It also has a wider card play area in order to accommodate and properly read cards in large print or with sleeves over them. You'll find an audio version of the new duelist's handbook on there as well. ” Amaya held the duel disc close to her body, squeezing it like it might disappear if she didn't hold on.

“Thank you,” she said.

As they left, Yugi placed a hand on her elbow. “Amaya, are you okay?” he asked. She sniffed, quickly rubbing the tears from her eyes with the back of her sleeve.

“I'm not crying, you're crying,” she snapped. Joey also seemed absolutely enthralled with his duel disc. He held it out so he could look at it and then held it up in the air victoriously.

“Yeah, I can't believe I've got a duel disc!”

“You don't think it's a little weird that you want one so bad when the last time you used one, Kaiba kicked your ass with it?” Tristan asked.

“Not to mention it's his product, so you're just handing Kaiba money,” Tea added.

“Eh, what do you know anyway,” Joey snapped back.

“Do you guys want to come over to my place?” Yugi asked. “We can practice with the new rules and work on building our decks.”

“Pass,” Tea and Tristan said at the same time.

“I have work,” Tea explained apologetically.

“I don't want to sit around while you nerds talk strategy,” Tristan added. Joey also declined.

“Sorry, but I gotta go meet my sister at the hospital. She's having her surgery tonight and I promised I'd be there. I'll catch up with you guys some other time!” They all said goodbye to him as he ran off down the street.

“How about you, Amaya?” Yugi asked. She grinned.

“I'll go grab my braille machine from my apartment!” she said excitedly. “I'll meet you there!” Then she ran off, leaving only Yugi, Tea, and Tristan.

“You know, she's seemed off all day. I'm glad to see her so excited,” Tea said. Yugi nodded in agreement.

“I think entering this tournament is a big step for her. Even though this tournament is reall important to the other me, lets try to be supportive and help her have fun.” They all nodded and parted ways, Yugi heading the same way Amaya had run off, though she was long gone.

When he made it home, Amaya was already there, leaning over the counter and talking adamantly to his grandfather. The duel disc box lay discarded in shreds on the floor.

“And look, this button here? All I have to do is press it and the AI will tell me what cards are on the field! The whole thing is fed into this ear piece here, so it's like I have my own personal assistant reading everything to me!” Amaya was saying. As the bell above the door rang, she stopped, turning towards the sound.

“Ah, Yugi,” his grandpa greeted. “Amaya was just showing me her new duel disc. It's so high tech! I can't wait to see it in action!”

“How did you get here before I did?” Yugi asked. Amaya replied with a cheeky grin.

“A magician never reveals her secrets,” she said. The eye of the crown seemed to wink at him, but it was only a trick of the light. “Come on, let's talk cards.”

They spent hours in his room, sitting cross legged on the floor with their card collections spread around them. Every twenty minutes or so they would duel, rarely making it a few turns in before one of them would surrender, unsatisfied, and start tinkering with their deck again. After her fourth loss in a row to Yugi, Amaya threw down her hand in frustration. She stomped from one side of the room to the other.

“I don't get it,” she snapped. “No matter what I do, I can't get the synergy right. It's like all the cards are there, but I can never draw them in the right order!”

“Then you need more stalls,” Yugi suggested. “Some wall monsters or some trap cards to keep your opponent occupied while you gather the cards you need for your main combo. Remember, you'll be facing a lot of different kinds of opponents. Your deck needs to be flexible if you plan to beat all of them.” Amaya threw herself down beside him once again, taking her deck and flipping through the cards.

“You know, the duel disc is really amazing,” she said. “I never would have thought I could be a part of any tournament, but it's like Kaiba read my mind and gave me exactly what I needed to compete. I'd hate to waste the opportunity by trying to compete with a third rate deck.”

“That makes me wonder,” Yugi said. “I was surprised when that shopkeeper brought it out. I never would have thought Kaiba would go through all that trouble. And y our deck isn't third rate. It just needs a little more tweaking.”

“Because he has something to gain from it. For one, Kaiba Corp will get an extra amount of good press from this. Kaiba doesn't just get to say he's accommodating handicapped players. He gets to say he revolutionized the game for us. And I doubt it took much effort on his part. Secondly, think about the ante rule.” Yugi thought about it for a second.

“You're right. The more players Kaiba draws in, the more rare cards will be in his tournament.”

“At the game shop,” Amaya said slowly. “When Joey's rank came up as one star. I used the crown to take a peek through the shopkeeper's eyes. His computer didn't malfunction. He changed Joey's rank on purpose.”

“What?”

“I don't know why he did it, but I think Kaiba's ante rule might have something to do with it. Think about it. Kaiba's got access to essentially limitless cash. He's used force and intimidation to get what he wants before. Essentially, he has access to all the rare cards he wants and isn't afraid to use whatever means necessary. So why would he bother holding a giant tournament and risk his Blue Eyes just for the publicity? He doesn't need to.”

“He's looking for something,” Yugi said in awe.

“And he won't be the only one. Something as rare as Joey's Red Eyes would be worth taking to a lot of people.” She flipped through the cards of her deck idly as she spoke. She had known this tournament would be dangerous-that's why she had agreed to enter. She had no grand plan of recovering any ancient memories like Yami, or prove herself as a true duelist like Joey, or to obtain a rare and powerful card like Kaiba. Memories were useless. Greed was senseless. All she wanted was to protect them. The tournament hadn't even begun yet, but there were so many questions they didn't know the answers to, so many enemies who had no faces. She would be damned if she'd sit on the sidelines and let any of them be hurt.

“Would you promise me something?” She was surprised to hear Yami's strong tenor speak to her.

“That most definitely depends on what it is.”

“Just...be careful.”

Amaya snorted and said, “I don't make promises I can't keep.” Her hands paused over a card in her deck, and she sighed. “And I think I know what the problem with my deck is.” She held up the Dark Magician Girl. Yami was surprised.

“But..isn't she your favorite card?” he asked. Amaya groaned, twirling the card between her fingers thoughtfully.

“Yeah, but her entire ability is based off of working with the Dark Magician, and I don't have one. And with these new rules Kaiba's made, she costs too much to be good support. I love her, but if she's holding my deck back it'll just mean I risk losing her in the ante.”

“So what do you plan to do?”

Amaya bit her lip, and then silently she held the card out for him to take. Yami's fingers brushed against the card, but his hand paused over it.

“I can't take this,” he insisted, trying to push her hand back towards her. “I couldn't possibly take a card that means so much to you.” Amaya looked disappointed.

“If you didn't want it, you just had to say so,” she mumbled, and Yami groaned. He couldn't stand to see her like that.

“That's not it,” he insisted. “Really.” He wasn't lying. It was true that the Dark Magician Girl had great synergy with his Dark Magician, and there was definitely a spot in his deck for her, but for Amaya to put her most treasured card in his hands was a lot of pressure, and she seemed like she was holding back, like she didn't really want to give her card up. So why was she offering? As if reading his thoughts, Amaya answered.

“If the fate of the world rests on your shoulders, you should have someone watching your back,” she said. “This tournament means too much to you for you to lose.” She freed her lip from the trap between her teeth and thrust the card towards him again, her expression more determined now. This time, Yami took the card.

“But what about your deck?” he asked. Amaya gave him a cheeky grin.

“As if she's my _only_ rare or powerful card,” she said. She thought back to her dream last night again, the heat and sand and pain and waking up with the feeling of loss still in her bones, and said more seriously “you'd believe me if I told you I just had a hunch, right?” Yami looked down at the card in his hand.

“Yeah. I think I would.”

Amaya stayed for dinner. At some point Yami and Yugi switched places again, seamless as always, and though she complained about getting a little warning she wasn't mad. They ate in Yugi's room, playing duel monsters and shoveling food into their mouths between turns and strategy advice. As Amaya had expected, removing Dark Magician Girl from her deck helped focus her deck, and without worrying about finding a way to shove her in, she found herself opening up to combos and cards in her collection she hadn't considered before.

In this moment, with her cards spread out across the table and a paper plate of spaghetti at her feet, she could pretend it was all just for fun. It grew dark before long.

“I should head home,” Amaya said reluctantly, stretching as she stood.

“I'm sorry,” Yugi said. “I didn't realize how late it was getting. I'll walk you home.” Amaya began throwing her things into her backpack. “Don't worry about it,” she insisted. “I'm perfectly capable of walking myself home. It's bright as day out there!” She laughed, but Yugi followed her down the stairs, standing awkwardly behind her as Amaya put on her shoes.

“Are you sure?”

“Don't make me say it again,” Amaya snapped. “It's not like I live very far away, and besides, if you walk me home that means _you're_ walking home by yourself.”

Yugi laughed. “Well that's not really a problem, I mean, as a guy-” Amaya snorted distastefully.

“What does being a boy have to do with it? We're practically the same size. And just hearing your voice kind of makes _me_ want to mug you.” She opened the door. “Bye Yugi!” she said before he could protest again and quickly shut the door behind her.

Walking home at night had never bothered Amaya. She much preferred the buzz of street lamps, the chirping of crickets, and the soft hum of crosswalk lights over the obnoxious sound of heavy crowds and speeding cars. It gave her space to think. Had she been right to give Yami her Dark Magician Girl? Amaya shook her head. She couldn't explain it, but there was this nagging suspicion in the back of her mind that he needed to have it. Besides, she knew he would take good care of it. And her deck was much stronger now.

Footsteps echoed behind her a hundred feet back.

As excited as she'd been earlier to get her new duel disc, this was entirely new territory for her. She'd be stupid if she weren't nervous. What if someone made a comment about her being blind? What if she lost one of her cards in the ante? _What if they couldn't defeat Marik?_

The footsteps were closer now.

“Hey, pretty girl! Shouldn't your boyfriend be walking you home this late at night?” The guy behind her had a voice like a door screeching on a rusty hinge. Amaya ignored him. She walked a little faster, but as she reached the next corner she realized with frustration that the crosswalk was red. A few cars were rumbling up to the light, just close enough she didn't dare cross. Besides, she didn't want to make a run for it. The stench of cigarette smoke was overwhelming as the guy walked up behind her.

“Why don't you let me walk you home then?”

“Do you _mind_?” Amaya snapped. Her foot jittered anxiously waiting for the light to turn.

“What?” the man sneered. “You got a problem with me?”

“We won't have a problem if you mind your own business and stop bothering me.” She could feel the man reach out for her arm, but before he could touch her the light turned and she quickly sped across the walkway. He didn't speed up to follow her, but as she walked she swung her cane from side to side harder than necessary, ready to brandish it as a weapon should he get too close. He was quiet, enough that she was sure he thought she no longer thought he was there, but using the crown she could see how his eyes followed her hungrily. She stretched the crown's power further, searching, and up ahead she saw another man lounging outside a store front, smoking a cigarette. She turned the corner.

“Excuse me!” she called out, and then man lifted his head, confused by the sight of this small blind girl speeding towards him.

“Can I help you?” he asked uncertainly.

“There's a man following me.” He looked past her, and he must have seen him because he stepped up to Amaya and put a hand on her shoulder.

“Don't worry,” he said. “I've got your back.” Amaya felt relieved. She'd stay here until the guy lost interest and wandered off. With a witness he'd be too scared to try anything.

Or, at least, that's what she thought. Soon enough, the first man who had followed her wandred onto the street.

“Typical!” he shouted. “I'm not good enough, but you find some other brute to take care of you! You fucking slut!”

“Just leave me alone!” Amaya snarled back. “Before I call the cops on you, you piece of human garbage!”

“That's the guy?” the second man asked. Amaya nodded.

Her arm was suddenly twisted behind her back. She cried out in pain.

“What the-” she tried to spin around, but his hold was too strong. “Let go of me!” She jumped between the eyes of her two attackers in a furious and terrified haze. Her own wide eyes stared back at her through their predatory gazes.

“You should really be more careful,” the man pinning her arms said. “You never know who to trust this late at night.” The first man moved even closer now. His breath was hot against her neck.

“Maybe you'll learn that lesson after this,” he breathed. His fingers brushed over her throat, trailing down,a nd grabbed a fistful of her shirt.

Amaya whipped her head around. Her bared teeth made contact with the flesh of the second man's arm, and she bit down as hard as she could. The flesh gave a sick pop as it gave in under her jaw. Hot blood poured into her mouth. The man cried out and let go of her, shoving her away from him. She stumbled sideways, trying to lurch away from both of them, the crown's vision darted frantically between the two men, seeking escape. But the act of being so removed from her own body combined with the panic and adrenaline made the street spin, and Amaya tumbled to the ground. She scrambled to pick herself up, but before she could one of them leaped towards her and grabbed a fistful of her hair, shoving her face back down into the pavement.

“You stupid little bitch,” he snarled. “You're gonna pay for that.”

“ _You leave her alone!_ ” That was Yami's voice. The two men froze over her, though their grip didn't loosen.

“What the fuck do you care?” the one holding her down asked.

“I will not tell you again,” Yami ordered icily. “Release her, or I _will_ kill you.”

“Go ahead and try,” the second man said. Amaya couldn't help but use the crown to peek through his eyes. From his perspective, she saw him marching towards Yami, who stood in the middle of the street, his arms crossed, his eyes fierce and deadly. The man reached out to grab him, but Yami dodged him easily, stepping to the side calmly. He grabbed the man by the throat.

“You will receive no mercy from me,” he snarled. “The moment you touched her, you sealed your fate.” The eye of horus appeared on his forehead, glowing with the ancient magic within him. The shadows surrounding every corner and angle of the street seemed to melt into the air, twisting into dark and monstrous forms with piercing eyes and sharp teeth. The man screamed.

“What the fuck are these things?” They were drawing closer, their movements like oil spreading slowly across the ground. Yami let go of the man and he fell to the ground, scrambling backwards frantically on his hands. But the monsters were surrounding him.

“They're merely a reflection of the darkness in your own heart,” Yami explained to him. “You've made so many victims feel hopelessness and fear just to serve your own selfish ends that there's nothing human left inside of you.”

“Get 'em away from me!” The shadow figures were on all sides now, their hideous teeth inches from the man's face. He swatted at them to no avail. He screamed and screamed in agony. And then Amaya's vision went black. The screaming stopped. Their was nothing to see from this man's perspective at all, as if all the life within him had just disappeared. She flinched, forcing herself back into her own body. She didn't dare look again.

Yami turned to look at the other man, but before he could say a word he had scrambled to his feet, hurling Amaya away from him. He held his hands up in surrender.

“Shit man, I'm sorry. Didn't mean to mess with your girl. If I-” Yami took a step towards him, ready to force him into the same shadow game, and he turned tail and ran. He thought of going after him for the briefest of seconds, but leaving Amaya alone wasn't worth it. That punk had better pray Yami never saw him again. He turned his attention to Amaya, who was still on the ground, too shaken to move.

“Amaya, are you okay?” he asked, collapsing next to her. “Your face-”

“It's okay. It's not my blood,” she answered. She shook her head. “I'm okay. Really.” She burst into tears. Immediately, his arms were around her. Warm. Safe. She hated it. Though her attackers hadn't actually ripped off her clothes, she felt naked and violated and raw. The thought of him seeing her like this, seeing how vulnerable she was, made her feel sick.

“I'm sorry,” she sobbed. “I-I” She inhaled, trying to take a deep breath to calm herself, but her lungs felt devoid of air.

“Shhh,” Yami coaxed. “It's not your fault.”

That wasn't what she wanted to hear. She didn't even _know_ what she wanted to hear. “H-h-how-d-did you-” she started to ask, but stopped. Something fell over her shoulders, and she flinched. It was his jacket.

“You left your deck in Yugi's room,” he explained. “We thought if we went after you quickly, we'd be able to catch up before you made it home.” His voice was calm, even, an active attempt to help her settle, but his arms around her were tight, holding back the rage and fear that threatened to shake him to his core. His eyes slid to the man's body slumped against the wall. He wasn't dead, but even the state he was in now, his mind destroyed by the darkness in his own heart, wasn't enough.

“Let's go,” he said quietly and helped Amaya stand. She pulled the jacket tighter around her. When had it gotten so cold? They walked in silence for a long time until Amaya paused.

“Wait. This isn't the way to my house.”

“Ah, the game shop is closer,” Yami replied sheepishly. “I guess I just started to walk that way and didn't think about it. Of course, if you'd rather I take you home...” Amaya thought about it for a moment. Yami's jacket over her shoulders, his arm holding her up, the steadiness of his voice, it all felt warm and comforting and it was hard to pull away from. She feared what thoughts would overrun her mind alone in the dark.

“Will Yugi's grandpa be okay with me staying?”

“I'm sure he won't mind at all.”

After that, the walk back to Yugi's house was quiet. Amaya desperately wanted him to say something, _anything_ to keep her distracted from the sick feeling in her gut, but when she thought of the monsters made of shadow, of the man still lying lifeless in the street, she didn't know what to say. Instead, she let him lead her back to the game shop in silence, opened the door for her, and lead her up the stairs. When they made it to Yugi's room he let go of her to rummage through his dresser drawers for a moment.

“Here.” Yami pressed a stack of clothes into her hands. “You and Yugi are about the same size. If you don't mind wearing his pajamas.” Amaya clutched them awkwardly.

“Um..I don't mind, but...”

“Is something wrong?” Yami asked.

“Would it be too much to ask if I could use the shower?” she asked quietly. “I...uh...I just feel really...”

“Oh. Yes. Of course.” He felt flustered now, and quickly led her out of the room and down the hall, opening the door for her once again. But as he turned away to give her some privacy, Amaya spoke up again.

“I'm sorry. I...um...” She felt her cheeks flush. “I don't know the layout of your-I mean...would you mind showing me where everything is?”

“Oh..um...” Yami stammered, also flustered now. “I'm sorry. I should have known.” Somehow, this just made everything worse. The two of them scrambling around each other felt so awkward. All Amaya really wanted was a moment alone. A moment where she didn't need to feel helpless in front of him. She just wanted to be clean. Yami, too, was aware of how awkward the situation had become. He scrambled to grab her a towel and lay everything out for her, and despite the fact he knew she couldn't see him, he found he couldn't look her in the eye. He hurried out of the bathroom like the devil was chasing him.

His mind was reeling as he waited in Yugi's room.

_It's a good thing we went after her_ , Yugi said. _Who knows what would've happened if we hadn't been there._

_I know exactly what would have happened_ , Yami answered grimly. Sighing, he sank onto the edge of the bed, his head in his hands. He hadn't been prepared for how angry he would be, how helpless he had felt when Amaya had turned at the sound of his voice and he'd seen the panic written on her face. The whole world had tilted upside down. And even then, all of that had been so much easier than it was now. Now that the adrenaline had worn off, it felt like every possible emotion had cooled into a congealed mess between the two of them. He found himself stumbling, unsure how to help her in the aftermath.

He sat there or a long time listening to the shower run, long enough that he knew the water had run cold, and still longer before he hard the faucet finally squeak shut and water stop. A few minutes later Amaya appeared in the doorway, wearing Yugi's blue striped pajamas, still rubbing her dripping hair with a towel. Despite how small they were, somehow they were still just a little too big for her. On any other night, Yami would have found himself flustered with how cute she looked. But tonight bruises were beginning to form across her cheek. Scratches littered her palms.

She shuffled across the room and sank onto the bed next to him.

“Does it hurt?” Yami asked. Amaya shrugged.

“My head kind of aches. And I feel really stiff now. But a few scrapes and bruises are nothing.”

“Amaya,” he said quietly, “You don't have to-”

“It could have been worse,” she replied icily. Her hands curled into tight fists. Her hair dripped slowly onto her lap. Yami wanted to take her face in his hands and tell her thank god it wasn't. He wanted to hold her to quell the sick feeling in his stomach when he thought what worse could have been. Instead, he stood.

“Yugi and I will sleep downstairs on the couch,” he said. “If you need us. He began to walk towards the door, but Amaya's hand shot up, grabbing him by the wrist.

“Wait,” she said, and he did. “Please don't leave me here alone.”

That took Yami off guard. She had told him before she wanted to keep her distance. She had spent the last few hours building a wall between them. Even her grip on him was shaky, as if she wasn't entirely sure she was making the right decision in asking him this. He knew now wasn't the time to indulge himself in his feelings for her. What she wanted from him now was simple need. Basic human instinct driven by fear. But despite knowing that, he could not deny her anything.

“I'll sit right here until you fall asleep,” he promised. He turned off the bedroom light and then sat back down on the edge of the bed. Satisfied, Amaya crawled beneath the covers and closed her eyes.

“Night, Yami,” she whispered.

“Goodnight, Amaya.”

 


	6. Chapter 6

Yami was no stranger to the dark corridors of the millennium puzzle. He'd wandered the halls in his mind thousands of times, still no closer to understanding his own memories. Still, tonight the eyes of wadjet on every door stared at him as he passed.

One door stood out to him tonight. It looked the same as the other: black metal, the golden eye emblazoned at the top, surrounded by veiny cracks as if it were clenched and pulsating. And yet he was sure he had never seen this particular door before. He stared at it for a moment, sizing up the possible threat. So many of these doors led to traps, ones even he couldn't pass, as if his own mind were keeping him at bay. Still, he could not deny his own curiosity. He opened it slowly.

Inside was a massive stone tablet that stood floor to ceiling. On its surface was carved the depiction of a duel monster, much like the ones he had seen in the museum yesterday. The tablet was in terrible condition. Deep cracks and chunks of missing stone scarred its surface. Where the monster's face should have been, the rock was worn away entirely. Even so, he recognized it immediately.

“Dark Magician Girl?” he asked out loud to no one in particular. The stone didn't answer. Of course. It was just a rock after all.

Something flickered from the corner of his eye. Yami turned abruptly, trying to see it, but all he managed to catch was a shadow darting back through the open door. Whatever it was had been standing behind him the entire time, close enough to touch him, and he hadn't even sensed it. Ignoring the nerves that gave him, he quickly followed it. He chased it across corridors, through doors, over endless staircases that seemed to wind in every direction. But no matter how fast he moved, the shadow moved faster. He could only ever seem to catch the tail end of its dark, fluttering form disappearing around the corner.

“Wait!” he called after it. “Please!” He rounded the corner, but the shadow was nowhere to be seen. It had disappeared without a trace. There was, however, another door. It swung open wide before him, screeching as it did. No light escaped its depths. Yami, determined now, strode confidently into the darkness.

Inside stood a woman, her face shrouded entirely by a red veil. “Who are you?” Yami asked, taking a step towards her. She did not answer him. “Please, do you know something about my past?” He reached out to her, taking a handful of the veil between his fingers, and tugged. The veil fell away, revealing nothing underneath it but air. Yami was alone in an empty room.

“Hey, partner.” He turned suddenly, surprised by the sound of another person, to see Yugi standing in the still open doorway. He was rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

“Yugi, what are you doing here?”

“Well, I was sleeping, but I could sense you were troubled by something, so I came to check on you.” He tried to get a better look into the room behind Yami. “Are you okay?” Yami shook his head in dismissal.

“I think I've been chasing a ghost,” he answered quietly and stepped out into the hall with Yugi. “Don't worry yourself over it.” He glanced back into the room, but there was nothing there. No tablet, no shadow, and no mysterious woman. His mind was as much of a mystery as it ever was. Yugi didn't look convinced.

“Are you sure you're alright?”

“Go back to sleep, partner,” Yami said. He rubbed his fingers together mindlessly, pondering the veil he could have sworn had been real between them. “It doesn't matter, anyway.”

***

The next morning, Amaya was woken up not by the familiar sound of her alarm clock, but a phone ringing. She rolled over, groaning at the stiffness that filled her. Her body felt like it had been hit by a train.

“Good morning,” she heard Yugi yawn into the phone down the hall. “Game shop.” At some point after Amaya had fallen asleep, he must have transformed back and gone to sleep on the couch. Of course. There was no reason for Yami to have stayed with her all night, and he hadn't said he would anyway. Amaya groaned, pulling the comforter over her head. She felt so embarrassed now that she had even asked. “Mrs Wheeler?” she heard Yugi ask. There was a few seconds of a reply on the other end, and then Yugi gasped, wide awake now. “Joey never made it to the hospital last night? Don't worry Mrs. Wheeler. We'll find him!” Amaya was out of bed and already throwing her clothes on before he had a chance to put the phone down.

They met up with Tea in the middle of town.

“Where do you think he could be? She asked, shaken. As she said it, Tristan pulled up on his motorcycle.

“I just stopped by his house. His dad said he never came home last night.”

“Do you think something could have happened to him?”

“Let's think about this for a second,” Yugi said. “We know he left for the hospital right after we registered. We know he'd never blow off Serenity, so something must have happened on the way there.”

“So we should retrace his steps, then,” Tea said.

“Wait.” Amaya quickly scrounged the millennium crown out of her bag. “I have a better idea.” A small flicker of the sickness she felt last night crept up again as she held the crown. The things she had seen last night: the confusing and flickering perspectives, her own terrified face looking back at her, the monsters carved from shadows, the nothingness of a man with no mind left to see, it had all been so horrible. She'd shoved the crown into her purse like she never wanted to use it again. Yugi seemed to sense her hesitation.

“Are you sure?” he asked. Not asking her if she was sure it would work, but if she was willing to do it. Amaya nodded.

“If it's for Joey, yes.” She placed the crown on her head.

“Amaya, what is that thing?” Tea asked.

“It's gonna help us find Joey,” she answered. _Come on, show me Joey_ she thought. The familiar feeling of floating above her own body overtook her, and for longer than usual she saw only blackness. But just when Amaya was about ready to give up, she felt the plunge, and sight was given to her. There was sand and a huge body of water before her eyes. For a second, she was floored. She had never seen the ocean before.

“Did you find him?” Yugi asked.

“ _I can't believe I lost_ ,” Joey was saying over and over again under his breath.

“He's at the beach,” Amaya said.

“I'm on it.” Tristan kicked off his bike and sped away. Amaya continued to watch through Joey's eyes, listening to his incoherent mumbling until she heard the roar of a motorcycle in the background and Tristan appeared.

“He found him!” she said and Yugi and Tea gasped in relief. Amaya kept watching as Tristan grabbed Joey by the collar, pulling him roughly out of the sand.

“What the hell are you doing here, man? You're supposed to be at the hospital!”

“I know that, but last night I was attacked by these goons! They took my Red Eyes, Tristan! How am I supposed to win without it?”

“None of that matters right now, Joey! Serenity needs you! Who cares about a stupid card!” Joey was shaking.

“I'm...I'm not worthy to see her. I'll just let her down again.”

“Joey, you fucking idiot,” Tristan snarled. His fist wound back, aimed directly for Joey's face. Amaya flinched, snapping back into her own eyes. The crown clattered to the ground.

“Are you okay?” Yugi asked, reaching to pick it up for her. “Amaya, what happened?”

“Um...” Amaya shook herself out. “I think Tristan just punched Joey.” If it had been anyone else, the others would have been shocked. Instead, they settled into relief. Whatever had happened, Tristan was knocking some sense into Joey. The crisis was over.

“But Joey said something concerning,” Amaya added.

They wouldn't get a chance to talk about it until school on Monday morning. Joey called them later to let them know the surgery had gone well, but Serenity was staying in a hospital far outside of the city, and he wouldn't be back until Monday morning. He wasn't willing to say what had happened to him from the hospital phone. Amaya, too, glossed over the crown when Tea and Tristan tried to ask. The pieces of this puzzle she had been given: the box, the note, the crown, the tablet-none of them fit together the way they should. She was missing something vital, and despite Yugi's reassurance that everything would work out okay, she couldn't shake the feeling.

When her friends asked about the nasty bruise on the side of her face, she played dumb, and they didn't push the issue. But Tristan still insisted on driving her home that night after Joey's call, and she didn't put up much of a fight. Alone in her own apartment once again, the irking feeling was stronger than ever. She needed answers. Immediately, she went to the small rolledex that sat on her kitchen counter. When she had found the one she was looking for, she grabbed her cellphone from her pocket and dialed. She got a generic voice mail box and waited for the beep.

“Um...yes, this is Amaya Hizakawa,” she said hesitantly into the phone. “I was hoping we could talk? I know it's been a long time but...well, anyway, please call me back.”

 


	7. Chapter 7

Amaya ditched school the next day. Instead, she headed to the museum, the crown on her head, the box it had come in and the note with it tucked safely in her bag. It felt odd being here again, after what she and Yami had learned last weekend. After everything she had said to him. At the time, she hadn't cared to know any more than what Ishizu had told them. But in the last week as she had used the crown's power more and more, it was beginning to really settle in how little she knew about it.

_My queen..._

What she knew boiled down to this. The crown bore the same symbol as the millennium puzzle, yet it was not named among the seven millennium items. _Someone_ had sent it to her with no prompting, someone who had known she would need to read the note in braille. And strangest of all, that despite what the note had said, despite what Ishizu confirmed with the power of the millennium necklace, there was no record of any queen or crown ever having existed. It was Yami's image inscribed on that tablet. His destiny laid out below the image of the three Egyptian god cards. But his queen? Her name? Her role in the shadow games that had threatened the entire world? Fairy tales had more proof of their existence.

On a Monday the museum was almost empty. Amaya headed for the security desk.

“Excuse me,” she asked, and the guard on duty looked at her in surprise.

“Shouldn't you be in school right now?” he asked.

“I'm here to see Dr. Brighten. I don't know where his office is, though.”

“Miss, you understand I can't just tell anybody who walks up to my desk where the Director's office is without an appointment.” Amaya grumbled.

“Well it shouldn't be too difficult for you to call him and confirm that with him, now should it?” The security guard grumbled incoherently, picked up the phone sitting on his desk, and dialed.

“Yes, Dr. Brighten, sorry to bother you. I have a young girl at my desk-” He paused, listening to the voice on the other end. Amaya took a quick peak through his eyes and saw they slid to her white cane. “Yes, she is.” She quickly let the magic fade before she heard the response. “Yes, sir. Okay, thank you.” The guard put the phone down. “Dr. Brighten says he'll be with you in just a few minutes, Ms. Hazekawa. He said while you wait to feel free to wander the exhibit.” She could hear the hesitance in his voice. He coughed. “Please, if you need anything, just let me know.”

Not that wandering the exhibit would do her much good. Amaya tried to be careful as she maneuvered around the glass cases full of ancient artifacts, but with no eyes to see through it really was pointless. She wandered between the halls of the exhibit seeing and touching nothing, like a ghost trapped between fragments of memory. She turned the corner into another room and stopped.

Inside this room stood a man.

The crown grew warm on her head. From behind his eyes, she could see he was looking at a mummy on display, its sarcophagus opened. In the glass, she could see his face reflected back, a dark skinned man wearing a white linen turban, a golden ankh hanging from a rope around his neck. He was crying.

“Why are you crying?” Amaya asked, moving to stand next to him. The man answered, but did not move to wipe the tears from his eyes. As he spoke to her, they continued to stream down his face.

“He is far from home,” he said. “How sad is it, to be denied your eternal rest? How undignified for a pharaoh.” She shrugged.

“At least people remember he was here,” she answered. The man turned to look at her, and Amaya could see through his eyes how his gaze immediately went to the millennium crown, but as he opened his mouth to say something, someone spoke up from across the room.

“Amaya, is that you?” She turned.

“Dr. Brighten?” she asked. The man laughed as he closed the distance between them.

“I can't believe how long it's been!” he greeted warmly, taking her by both shoulders. “It must have been about ten years by now!” Amaya laughed awkwardly in response, but the director was in full force and didn't seem to notice. “Come, come!” he said, steering her away. “We'll have tea in my office!”

“Bye,” Amaya said to the man in the turban, and Dr. Brighten stopped, confused.

“Amaya, dear, who are you talking to?” She pointed, confused.

“There was a man right beside me when you arrived,” she said. “We were talking.” Dr. Brighten laughed.

“But there was no one there,” he explained. “Are you sure you didn't mistake the voice of the pre-recorded reading for the display as another person?”

“I...must have,” Amaya answered and let him lead her away, but a shiver ran down her spine.

They retired to Dr. Brighten's office. It was small and quiet, a place that smelled like old things: books, ink, wood, coffee. He led Amaya to the chair across his desk and fiddled with the electric kettle in the corner.

“I have Earl Gray, darjeeling, ceylon, mint,” he advised her. “Or would you prefer something green?”

“Oh anything is fine,” Amaya answered. “Some of those sounded expensive? Not one of those. I don't want you to waste your good stuff on my unrefined pallet.” He laughed.

“Your father was much the same way,” he mused. “He used to drink just about anything he could find lying around, especially if it had caffeine. I once saw him, he was working on his thesis, poor man hadn't slept in three days, I sat a cup down on the table that I had found in the room with week old coffee in it, and before I could put it in the sink he'd grabbed it and downed the whole thing.” He laughed.

“So my dad was super gross?”

“No, just very passionate and very distracted by more important things.” The director sat down across from her, placing a warm cup in front of her. It smelled like lemon. “But we were happy then, the three of us.” He sighed. “It's hard to believe its been ten years already.” Amaya gripped the cup tightly, flexing her fingers with the warmth.

“Yeah...” she mumbled. There was a moment of awkward silence.

“So what is it that brings you to see me today?” the director asked. “I assume it isn't to reminisce about my college days with your parents.” A little hesitantly, Amaya pulled the crown from her head and held it out to him.

“I was hoping you could answer someone questions about _this,”_ she said. Dr. Brighten took it gently.

“Fascinating,” he said after a long moment of contemplative silence. “It's obviously Egyptian in origin. It appears to be from the 18th dynasty. Here, at the center, is the eye of wadjet. It was a common protective symbol found on many pieces of jewelry. In fact, it would be right at home with many of the artifacts we have in the exhibit. Where on Earth did you get this?”

“It was a gift,” Amaya stated simply. “But I'm not sure where it originated, or what it's purpose was. I'm hoping to find out more about it.”

“Well from what I can tell, it's pure gold. Diadems were popular jewelry in the day, but one of pure gold, with this kind of craftsmanship-my best hypothesis is it must have belonged to a noblewoman, or someone else of great wealth.”

“What about a queen?” He was quiet for a second.

“Yes, I suppose it could have belonged to a queen,” he mused quietly. Amaya bit her lip.

“The exhibit...there's those stones depicting the nameless pharaoh. He was from the same time period, wasn't he?”

“Ah, so you have been paying attention!” the director replied animately. He continued to mull over the crown in his hands. “Yes, the unnamed pharaoh also is of the 18th dynasty. Though there is no evidence to suggest he ever married. No depictions of any woman meeting such a description are to be found in the tomb, nor a name among the royal archives. That isn't to say though that he _couldn't_ have married. She may have simply been erased from history.” That caught Amaya's attention.

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“Exactly that,” the director replied. “The Egyptians believed very heavily in magic. The supernatural and the natural were one, coexisting in separate planes, a complicated relationship that needed to be treaded precisely to avoid chaos. That is why burial rituals were so important. They allowed the living to continue on in the afterlife. Incorrect handling of the rituals of death could lead to eternal agony for the deceased.”

“Eternal agony?” Amaya asked. Her mouth felt dry. She hastily took a gulp of tea, burning the inside of her mouth.

“The Egyptian book of the dead teaches us that they believed human beings were comprised of more than just the soul and the body as we would know it today. Rather, it consisted of multiple parts. The ha-your physical body, your ka-your life essence, your ba-your personality, and your ren-your name, which was an important aspect that they believed held all of your memories and worth. If these aspects couldn't be maintained, your spiritual body would not be able to form in the afterlife, and instead your ka and ba would wander endlessly. Without your ren, they would never be able to recognize one another to move on.”

“So...by destroying the memory of someone's existence...you destroy the cycle of life and death itself,” Amaya said.

“Yes, exactly!” Dr. Brighten was excited, but Amaya felt anything but.

“So do you think someone did it on purpose?” she asked. “Destroyed the memory of the queen's existence, I mean.”

“Well this is entirely hypothetical,” Dr. Brighten answered. “We don't really know if there was a queen at all, and if there was, we certaintly can't say this crown was hers.”

 _But I can..._ Amaya thought.

“In any case, let's take it at face value that it is true for the sake of argument. If so, it is certainly strange that the visage of the unnamed pharaoh should survive, but she should not in any form. As if her husband had reason to do so. Why is there no body laid to rest? No tomb to enshrine her? Not even a drawing on the wall of the tomb to show her by his side?”

“What's your best educated guess, doc?” At this, Dr. Brighten smiled.

“Amaya, you seem like you've grown into an intelligent girl. Why don't you tell me?” Her hands tightened around her tea cup, but the warmth didn't fill her hands. She felt cold and empty.

“I think there was nothing left of her to remember.”

***

Shadi waited for the girl to return. He had spent much time searching for the one who had stolen the millennium eye and murdered Pegasus. Whoever had taken it, they had shifted the balance-the destiny that awaited was not what it should be. That girl...that she had seen him was suspicious in and of itself. Most did not see him wandering through the world of the living. And the diadem she had worn, bearing the queen's mark....

When she finally appeared, she was being guided by the director. Shadi watched them from afar, neither seeming to notice him. When the director said his goodbyes and left, he stepped forward.

“Oh, it's you,” the girl said. “The guy who was crying earlier.” Shadi said nothing to her. He held the millennium key to the space between her blind eyes and unlocked the door.

Inside there was nothing. Not just a blackness, but an emptiness that expanded into a space more infinitely large than he had ever seen in a single mind. He held a hand out, and in the darkness he felt the half formed idea of objects around him, not solid things that existed within the space but ghosts of things that once existed there. As he touched them, he could feel them solidly beneath his flesh for a moment, and then he would glide right through it as it slowly faded away. Shadi dared not venture further. If he became trapped in this room, his soul would become like this as well.

Shadi removed the key from her forehead.

“Well, what did you see?” she asked, unphased by what had just happened. Shadi didn't know how to answer her. “That's what I thought,” she said and walked away.

 


	8. Chapter Eight

“So they took your Red Eyes?” Tristan repeated. Joey nodded. He pounded his fist against the desk.

“Those punks! I'm sure they cheated! I'm gonna get my card back!”

“Calm down, Joey,” Yugi said. “Save it for the tournament. We'll definitely get your card back.” He grumbled, but dropped his fist.

“How'd you guys find me anyway?” he asked. “I mean, I appreciate it and all, but Tristan came out of nowhere!”

“Yeah, Yugi,” Tea said. “What was that thing that Amaya had? It looked kinda like the millennium puzzle.”

“Better question,” Tristan grumbled. “Where is _she_ to answer that question?” It was third period, and she had still not shown up to class.

“Maybe she's sick?” Yugi offered as explanation, though he didn't really believe it. He'd seen her last night before Tristan had taken her home, and though she'd still been shaken up by the attack, she had seemed fine.

“Well then,” Tristan said nonchalantly, “If our friend is feeling sick-”

“Our female, handicapped friend who lives all alone,” Joey added mischievously.

“Then we should go check on her to make sure she's alright, shouldn't we?” Tristan finished. “I mean, that's certainty more important than English class.”

“I think you might be on to somethin', Tristan,” Joey agreed, grinning. During the next break, the four of them quietly slipped out of the classroom. As they walked past the school gates, Tea sighed.

“Do they even care that we leave?” she asked. “I mean, does anyone even inform our parents that we're skipping class.”

“Nah,” Joey answered. “Then they'd have to tell our parents about the number bullies who have almost killed Yugi over the years.” When they finally reached Amaya's apartment, they knocked on the door. For a long moment, no one answer. Joey banged on the door again.

“Hey! You in there or what!” When again they received no reply, they tried opening the door and found it unlocked.

“DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING!” They immediately froze. Even a step into the doorway, there were papers stacked seemingly at random, books propped open to various pages and laid out across the floor. Amaya sat on the floor by the kitchen table, her hand still paused over a page as if they'd interrupted her reading mid sentence. She quickly finished scanning the paragraph, then held up the book carefully towards them.

“Put this one in that pile over there by the record player,” she said. “And _don't touch anything_.”

“Yeah, yeah, we heard you the first time,” Joey grumbled. Yugi sidestepped the mess on the floor to take the book. Amaya still held her thumbs to mark the correct page.

“Pleas be careful,” she said as Yugi took it. “That one took me forever. It's not in braille, just raised text, and it's so freaking hard to read I'll never find my spot again.”

“Um..Amaya, what _is_ all of this?” Tea asked. She leaned down to scan one of the books. Most of the papers were in braille, but this one was a full leather bound volume. It had been bookmarked in several places, and was now open on one of those tabs to a giant photo of a painting in an ancient Egyptian tomb.

“Is this why you weren't at school today?” Tristan asked. He reached out to touch a lief of papers stacked on the kitchen table, but Amaya smacked his hand away.

“What are you, _five?_ ” she snarled. “I told you not to touch it. I have everything laid out in a very precise order right now.” Her hair was a frizzled mess around her shoulders. Her clothes were wrinkled. As if she had spent all day fussing about with them while she worked.

“Come on, seriously, what is all this?” Joey groaned. Yugi placed a hand on her elbow.

“We were worried about you at school today,” he said calmly. “Why don't you take a break for a minute and just talk to us.” Amaya took a deep breath and picked the millennium crown off the kitchen table.

“Hey, that's the thing you used to find Joey!” Tea said. Amaya nodded.

“This is the millennium crown. From what I can tell, it lets me take a piece of my soul and transfer it into someone else's body. So I can see and hear and feel everything they do.”

“Wait, you can _see_?” Tristan asked, dumbfounded. “Like with their eyeballs?”

“No Tristan, with their _assholes_.” She rolled her eyes. “It showed up out of nowhere. I had no idea what it was. Then when I went to the museum with Yami, Ishizu called it by name. She said it belonged to the queen of egypt, the Pharaoh's wife. And she said I was her reincarnation.”

“Wait _what_?” all four of her friends asked. Yugi was calm. He was the only one who had heard all this before.

“So you two were _married_?” Tea asked, shocked. Amaya grimaced.

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Wait, that's amazing though,” Tristan said. “You were a _queen_. Why are you so mad about it?” Amaya grabbed a book sitting on the counter by the fridge and held it out to them. On the page was a painting of a pharaoh-though not the one they knew- and a woman standing beside him. Their hands were bound together with a red scarf.

“This is Tutankhamen,” Amaya explained. “The boy king of Egypt. He died when he was only eighteen. And that is a depiction of the marriage ceremony to his wife, Ankhesenamun.”

“Wow, she was beautiful,” Tea said.

“Yeah, she was also his sister.”

“So what's your point?” Joey asked. Amaya threw the book down, her face distressed.

“What if I was his _sister_?” Yugi laughed.

“I think you're overthinking it a bit,” he said, but frowned. “There's something else, isn't there?” Amaya groaned and sank to the floor. She picked up another book, passing it between her hands moodily.

“I went to the museum again this morning,” she explained. “Something just feels so off about this. There's only _seven_ millennium items. And suddenly this eighth one appears, and its not named or mentioned anywhere, and it belongs to a woman who's been completely erased from history.”

“But we know she was real because Ishizu showed you the past with her millennium necklace,” Yugi said. Amaya nodded.

“Right. So why was she erased?” The others were all quiet, unsure how to answer. Amaya continued.

“I met with the director of the museum. He's an old family friend. He told me that Egyptians believed the gods controlled the balance of life and death. That ritual was important to maintain that balance. This book over here-” She got up and took a book from the hall. “It talks about how mummification was an important ritual to allow the deceased's ka-that's like your soul- to form in the afterlife and live on. And this one-” She threw the book down and grabbed a few papers paperclipped together. “This one talks about how pharaohs of new dynasties would erase the names of their predecessors off of monuments and records, because if a ba-thats the part of your soul that remains among the living- cannot recognize its own name, a person cannot be reincarnated. By destroying the memory of someone, you could ensure that when they died, they could never pass on or be reborn. You've ended the cycle of life and death.”

“And what happens when you do that?” Tea asked. Her voice betrayed a chill.

“I don't know,” Amaya admitted quietly. “But I think it's something terrible.” They were all quiet for a long time.

“Guys,” Yugi finally said. “I think I need to talk to Amaya alone.” Quietly, the others shuffled out of the apartment, leaving just the two of them. Once the door had shut behind them, Yami quickly changed places with him.

“Amaya,” he said softly. She groaned.

“Oh god, were you listening to all of that?” He knelt down beside her on the floor. For a moment they didn't say anything to each other. Yami looked over at her. She had tangled her hands in her hair again, and she sat hunched over as if she would try to disappear into herself. She had gone to the museum with him last week because she had wanted to help him, but since that day she seemed more and more like she was the one who needed help.

“You did all of this yourself?”

“I had help from the city librarian. And the director.” She was still looking down at her knees.

“When we went to the museum the first time, you didn't tell me you knew the director,” Yami said. Amaya shrugged.

“He and my dad were friends from college. The last time I saw him was at my parents funeral.” She laughed. “I think they used to date, actually.” She shook her head. “I feel like I know less now than I did before.” She held her hands out to gesture at the books scattered across the kitchen. “All of these pages, all of this history, and there isn't one word about her. But someone knows, Yami. Someone left this crown on my doormat. Someone knew to bring it to me.” She crossed her arms over herself and held herself tight. “Someone knew who I am. And they know where I live.” Yami reached out to her, but hesitated.

_You dork,_ Yugi said in his mind. _Just hold her._

_I don't want to overstep my...I mean she told me she didn't want to..._

_You two are both so stubborn. She needs it right now. Just do it._

Biting his lip, Yami fought back his hesitation and pulled her to him. Amaya gasped in surprise, but she didn't pull away. His arms were tight around her, and he smelled like leather and metal. Warm and sturdy.

“No one is going to hurt you,” he whispered, and she froze. She hadn't said it in so few words, but he had understood anyway. “Not some punks in an alley way, not Marik, and not any strangers with a millennium item who know about your past.”

“How could you possibly know that?” she asked.

“Because I'll protect you.”

“I don't need you to protect me,” she insisted, but she dug her face into his shirt, trying to take as much of him in as she could to make the anxiety in her gut go away. He laughed quietly.

“No, I know. And just so you know, I don't think you were my sister.” Amaya snorted.

They didn't say anything else. They just sat there on the kitchen floor, neither one willing to be the first one to pull away.

 


	9. Chapter 9

The morning of the tournament finally dawned. Yami hadn't rested at all. Once again, he had seen the woman in red wandering the labyrinth of the millennium puzzle. As he got ready, he put it from his mind, his thoughts consumed only by the excitement and gravity of the task that laid before him. But as he walked to the center downtown where all duelists were supposed to meet, he found his thoughts wandering back to the crumbling carving of the Dark Magician Girl. What omen could it possibly be?  
_You seem distracted_ , Yugi said. _Are you nervous?_

“Oh...no,” Yami assured him. “I'm sorry. I was just lost in thought. I-” Something red flashed out of the corner of his eye and he immediately turned.

“Yami!” It was no ghost. It was just Amaya running towards him. Her scarlet dress bobbed around her thighs as she approached, her white cane in her hand though she did not appear to be using it. The crown was braided in her hair.

“Amaya,” he greeted when she had finally caught up. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” she answered. She fell in sync next to him as they continued to walk. “You ready to do this thing?” Yami chuckled.

“You seem energetic this morning.”

“I slept well,” she answered. “Well, I was too nervous to sleep. But that means I didn't have any nightmares, so that means I slept well.” The closer they got to downtown, the more crowded the streets became, most of the people carrying duel discs. A few turned and looked at Amaya as they passed. As she passed from eye to eye, guiding herself along by keeping sight of her red dress, she could hear them whisper to each other about her. She told herself, as she had been doing all morning, to ignore them. “I wonder where Joey is,” she said before Yami could comment about her sleep habits. “Wasn't he supposed to meet us here?”

“I'm not sure, but I hope he shows up soon. Kaiba's going to start any minute now.” As if on cue, the wind picked up around them, blowing their hair about wildly. Amaya cursed and clamped her hands down over her dress to keep it from blowing up around her waist. When Yami looked up to see what was going on, a giant blimp as hovering above them, the largest television monitor he had ever seen hanging from its side. Kaiba's face was broadcast to the entirety of down town Domino.

“I hope none of you came to my tournament looking for friendly competition,” Kaiba sneered. “Battle City is going to be an all out war.” He held up a glass card, identical to the ones each of them had received with their duel discs.

“The finals in this tournament will be held in a hidden location. Only the eight best duelists who win six locator cards will have the location be revealed to them. And only one will win the title of the greatest duelist in the entire world!” He went on to explain the ante rules before officially announcing the tournament had begun. As he finished and the blimp finally disappeared, Amaya sighed. “Well he sure knows how to be dramatic,” she said, smoothing her hair and dress back down. “Now we just have to find Joey.”

“WHERE ARE YAH, YOU CREEP?” As if on cue, Joey stormed into the square. Amaya shrugged.

“Well that was easy.” She and Yami rushed towards him to find him yelling at a man in a purple cloak sitting at a table in a nearby cafe.

“Hey freak!” he shouted. “I knew I'd find yah!” The man laughed.

“Didn't you learn your lesson the first time?” he sneered.

“Yeah. Never let a creep in an old cape slap you around!”

“Joey, what's going on?” Yami asked as they caught up to him. Joey pointed at the man.

“This guy is the one who stole my Red Eyes,” he snarled. “They call themselves Rare Hunters, which to me translates to crazy cape wearing freakazoids! And I'm gonna make sure the _first_ duel I fight in this tournament is me getting it back!”

“I have no interest in dueling you,” the rare hunter said in a bored tone. “You have nothing I want.” His eyes flickered predatorally to Amaya. “But perhaps your friend here would like to be my next victim. Her Dark Magician Girl is no small prize.”

“You have nothing that _I_ want,” Amaya parroted back at him. His voice sounded like he was playing with her and she hated it. Yami didn't like the way he was looking at her either. He took a step forward, subtly putting himself in front of her.

“I'll duel you,” he insisted.

“Even better,” the rare hunter sneered. “I can defeat the Duelest Kingdom champion and take his rare Dark Magician!” He stood, but Joey continued to protest.

“Yug, I can't let you risk your Dark Magician for me.”

“It's the only way to win back your Red Eyes,” Yami answered, unphased. “Besides, I'll have to risk my Dark Magician eventually in this tournament. So do we have a deal, rare hunter?” Joey and Amaya stepped back to give the two of them room, but a crowd was already forming, drawn by the spectacle. The first duel of the Battle City Tournament, and it was none other than Yugi Mutou. The duel was amazing. The rare hunter threatened to destroy Joey's card if he revealed the hunter's strategy, not that Yami would have let Joey help him cheat anyway, but it didn't take him long to figure out that he was trying to summon Exodia. He only needed one card to win: Chain of Destruction, allowing him to cripple the rare hunter's deck and win the game. The rare hunter fell to his knees, apparently paralyzed by his defeat.

“No...no...” he kept muttering under his breath. Yami had no patience for such drama. He walked up to the rare hunter, ripping the deck out of his duel disk in search of the Red Eyes Black Dragon. As he did, he noticed something off about the cards. There were three sets of Exodia in the deck, but on closer inspection he could see there were slight imperfections in the print. They were fakes.

“These cards are counterfeit!” he snarled. “You're a cheat!” And he ripped all of the hunter's Exodia cards in half and tossed them away as nothing more than garbage. Joey and Amaya ran up to him.

“Yugi, that was amazing!” Joey cheered. Amaya frowned.

“Seems like a waste of perfectly good Exodia cards,” she sighed.

“Amaya, they were fake,” Yami said. “It would be dishonorable to use them in a duel.”

“Yeah, I know. But we could've sold them on Ebay or something.” Before Yami could respond, though, the rare hunter had risen to his feet. His eyes had a glassy appearance to them, his movements jerky and unsure, as if whatever soul had been residing in his body had disappeared, replaced with some stranger that moved his limbs about like a marionette.

“Pharaoh,” the rare hunter said, but it didn't sound like his voice. Yami stiffened. “We finally speak at last.”  
“Who are you?” Yami asked. He knew well enough that this wasn't the same man who he had dueled, though he did not yet know who he was speaking with, or how he had taken over the rare hunter's body.

“My name is Marik,” the man greeted. “And this man is but a small and insignificant pawn in my game. He is one of many under my control. And I promise by the time this tournament is over, I will not only defeat you, but take my revenge and kill you.” Amaya felt the anger boil up inside of her at the sound of the name.

“Hey!” she snarled, stepping up beside Yami. “Why don't you just leave him alone? He doesn't owe you anything!”

“Why don't you tell your bitch to heel,” Marik said. Immediately, Yami and Joey both sprang into action, putting themselves in front of Amaya as if to shield her from his view, their fists curled.

“What the hell did you just say about my friend?” Joey barked. Amaya was having none of it. Yami opened his mouth to speak, but before he could say anything she had grabbed them both by the back of the collar, pulling them back beside her so she could see Marik again as easily as if she were parting a curtain.

“He said for you to heel,” she said icily. “Back down, he's not worth it.” The rare hunter Marik controlled grinned, his eyes narrowing in amusement.

“You should listen to her,” he laughed. “She's smarter than you are. She at least knows when she's met her match!”

“We don't have to answer to any of this,” Amaya told him calmly. “The Pharaoh already beat you. Now go home with your tail between your legs like a good dog, otherwise I've got enough salt to rub into your wounds all day.” Mark scowled. His eyes bore into Yami's.

“This isn't over,” he spit, and the rare hunters body toppled to the ground, falling in a heap of limbs like the strings holding him up had been cut, and didn't move again.

“What...the hell...just happened?” Joey asked. Yami sighed and shook his head.

“It's only been twenty minutes since this tournament started,” he groaned.

“Well at least this time no one's grandpa lost their soul,” Amaya said cheerfully, and then added “that we know of.” Yami moved to examine the body. He was still breathing, but there was no life in his eyes, no movement in his limbs to indicate there was any soul within them. He was now nothing more than a sack of meat. He recognized the results of shadow magic easily.

“Here Joey, your Red Eyes,” he said, handing Joey the card, but Joey refused to take it.

“Thanks Yug, but you keep it,” he insisted. “You won it fair and square. That card's gotten me through some tough times, and uh...if freaks are threatening to kill yah, man you need all the help you can get.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. It's like a piece of me is right there in your deck, cheering you on.”

“Thank you Joey. I'll take good care of it.”

“If you two are done with your little bromance over there, can we get a move on? I can feel myself growing older waiting to duel over here,” Amaya complained.

“Yeah, yeah, hold your horses,” Joey said.

“Easy for you to say,” Amaya teased. “I actually have locator cards to win.”

“Oh so you think you're better than me?” Joey reeled. “Alright, smart ass, why don't we have a little competition? See who the first one to six locator cards is.”

“Loser has to dress up like a dog and confess their undying love to Kaiba.”

“You're on!”

“You two are fired up, I see,” Yami laughed. “Let's all do our best.”

“I think I'm gonna head the other way,” Joey said. “I gotta go find my own duels! I'll smell yah later!” He waved and was off.

“Shall we?” Yami asked her. He held out his arm for her to take. Amaya felt her face go hot, but she nodded, taking his elbow, and the two of them walked off.

 


End file.
